


In the Shade of a Hero

by TheUnicornFountain



Category: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms, The Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time
Genre: Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Canon-Typical Violence, Dysfunctional Family, Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-21
Updated: 2015-03-14
Packaged: 2018-03-02 13:24:37
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 29
Words: 193,233
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2813534
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheUnicornFountain/pseuds/TheUnicornFountain
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Set in the <em>Ocarina of Time</em> universe, and roughly following the story. </p><p>Link and his twin brother go through a tumultuous childhood before becoming residents of Hyrule Castle. But the brothers grow ever farther apart as Ganondorf's plans to conquer Hyrule drive between them. Link is eventually forced into the destiny of the Hero by a mysterious mentor, yet he is anything but prepared for his predetermined fate.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue: Calculated Loss

**Author's Note:**

> Another old story of mine, _In the Shade of a Hero_ [ItSoaH] was a personal exercise to flesh out a Hero who might not be prepared to challenge Ganondorf, or his destiny, as well as a chance to give Link and Ganondorf more than a hero/villain relationship. (Similar to my _Blue Arrow_ fanfic.) 
> 
> This story was once on ff.net, but it didn't appear to have many fans (ff.net having more of a slash following back then). I've decided to re-edit it, and post it here. 
> 
> **TW:** ItSoaH features allusions to rape (near-exclusive to the prologue), dysfunctional/alcoholic families, and violence and gore. 
> 
> Feedback and kudos is greatly appreciated and encouraged.
> 
> Please enjoy, thank you.

# In the Shade of a Hero

### Prologue: Calculated Loss

More than the screams, the blood on the walls, and the wound in his leg, the laughter worked at him, plucking his raw nerves with sharp-nailed fingers. They were enjoying this. The arrogant pricks were _relishing_ it. He would show them. He would _kill--_

A wet cough drew Ganondorf’s eyes from the throne room’s doorway and down to Asra. He had lowered her to the floor to hold her in his arms, but it was a wasted comfort. The soldier’s sword had left a ragged hole in her gut. Her blood soaked Ganondorf’s pants, mixing with his own. He gripped her wrist and felt the weak flutter of her pulse. 

The remains of the aforementioned soldier filled a corner of the room. Not even in death could the desert sand be avoided. It was working to cover the man’s sticky blood; buoyed by the drifts of air that found their way through the halls of the Gerudo fortress despite its labyrinthine design. 

Ganondorf couldn’t remember dispatching the man no more than he could remember how a blade had found his shin. Everything was a blur of screams, and flashes of both pale and dark skin splashed with red. The stench of blood was thick in his nose, and he could feel Asra’s body growing colder. He held her tighter; pressed her close to his battle-flushed skin in hopes of passing some warmth to her. Her breaths were sporadic against his skin.

“Gan, please.” Asra squeezed Ganondorf’s hand. “The pain. Just…” She closed her eyes. Ganondorf watched her jaw tighten in the wake of fresh pain. “End it,” Asra gasped.

“Asra--”

A rush of strength came to Asra, and she dug her fingers into the back of Ganondorf’s hand. “I won’t let them take me.” Her words were low and calm. “Let me die a warrior.”

Asra. _Asra._ His sometimes lover. His general. By Gerudo law it was Ganondorf, the lone male, who had to lead his people onto the battlefield, despite his youthful eighteen years. But it was Asra who had truly led the war against the small kingdom of Hyrule. They hadn’t lost for a lack of her skill. By the war’s end, it had simply turned into a numbers game.

Ganondorf closed his eyes. He couldn’t block out the screams or the laughter. He nodded his agreement to Asra’s request. His blind hands sought her neck and even now, even now, he worried his calloused fingers felt too rough to her.

The sharp crack of bone preceded the arrival of twin witches. They appeared in flashes of light before their grieving son, and looked down their long noses at him. Gerudo features were hidden in their lined green-brown skin where the signs of long life and witchcraft predominated. 

“Ganondorf,” Kotake, the witch on the right, called. A large, blue jewel adorned her forehead. She took a step forward, and her garments rang with hidden talismans. “You must listen, Ganondorf. The soldiers will reach this room in moments.”

Ganondorf raised his head to glare at Kotake and her sister Koume, who favored the color red. “You knew, didn’t you?” he growled. “You knew Nabooru would defect with half our numbers! And yet you told me to make war anyway?” He would have leapt at them if not for the limp body in his arms.

“It was preordained, yes,” Koume said. “Our real war will be fought _within_ the castle walls, Ganondorf, not outside it.”

“What are you talking about?” Ganondorf tightened his grip on Asra’s body and dropped his eyes. “I’m done with fighting.”

“Listen,” Kotake said. With reluctance, Ganondorf focused on her. “The soldiers are nearly here. This is what you must say to live: I yield. I pledge my service and self to the king of Hyrule.”

Ganondorf laughed without humor. “And you’re so sure I still want to live?”

Koume nodded towards the dead soldier in the corner. “A suicidal man wouldn’t have defended himself.”

“Take care, Ganondorf,” Kotake said. She took a step back to her sister’s side. “We’ll be in touch.”

The witches vanished in a second flash of light. Ganondorf bowed over Asra and pressed his cheek to her cooling forehead. Beyond his grief, he heard light footsteps enter the throne room. 

“He’s in here!” Nabooru called to the unseen soldiers in the hall. Ganondorf lifted his head to glare at her. She met his look in turn. Her fists were clenched, and her eyes darted between him and Asra with marked fury. So, Asra was not only his lover during the war.

“You bitch,” Ganondorf hissed at Nabooru. The heavy footfalls of soldiers nearly drowned out the insult. “How dare you defy your king!”

“You are not my king,” Nabooru said.

“Every death is on your hands!” Ganondorf pressed. He wanted to see regret in her eyes. He couldn’t handle all this grief on his own. He would force her to carry some of it.

Nabooru shook her head. “I didn’t start this war. But I have ended it.”

The hilt of a sword struck the back of Ganondorf’s skull. He fell forward and to the side to avoid crushing Asra’s body. Pain rebounded in his head, encouraged by a second strike that drove a cry out of him.

“This is him?” a soldier questioned. Ganondorf blinked and tried to find the source of the voice through the haze of red over his eyes. A rough hand forced his head down against the stone floor, and knees pressed into the small of his back.

Nabooru’s reply was laced with disdain. “He’s the only male Gerudo, isn’t he?”

“Who knows?” another soldier said. The source was a different one than the soldier holding Ganondorf down. “My men haven’t finished checking under all the skirts yet.”

“We’ll do a thorough job of it, sir,” said Ganondorf’s restrainer, and the men laughed.

That sound… Ganondorf thrashed beneath the soldier’s knees. The man’s armored weight proved the attempt as futile, and Ganondorf received a third hard blow for his trouble. He blacked out for a few seconds and came around to the commanding officer ordering his death in a bored voice.

_Fine,_ said a tired voice in Ganondorf’s head. _What else is left for me?_ Yet a second voice cried out through his mouth, “I yield, I yield! I pledge my service and self to the king of Hyrule!”

There was a moment of surprised silence in the room. The soldier on Ganondorf’s back broke it with a groan. “He’s kidding, right?” he said, half-laughing. “Where’d the heathen learn that?”

“Learn what, soldier?” the commanding officer asked. “I didn’t hear anything.” His subordinate laughed again. A blade pressed against Ganondorf’s neck.

“I did.” Nabooru’s voice killed the soldier’s amusement. 

Ganondorf felt the cool touch of metal leave his skin. He released a shaky breath. He could picture the soldiers eyeing Nabooru, judging the twin scimitars on her hips and her toned body that promised a difficult and likely lethal fight. He took careful, shallow breaths as his fate was decided in a heavy silence. He could taste sand on his dark lips. A pebble pressed one of his piercings hard against his earlobe.

The commanding officer snapped, “Soldier!” Ganondorf felt the knees against his back stiffen with anticipation. He sucked in a breath and held it. “Detain the desert rat. We’ll take him to the king so he can _pledge his service and self.”_

“Yes, sir.” The soldier didn’t bother to hide the disappointment in his voice.

Rope was procured, and it soon bit into Ganondorf’s ankles and wrists. Distantly, he could hear the noise of the battle was diminishing. Word was likely spreading. _Your leader is captured. The battle is over. Lay down your arms and you won’t be hurt._ How pretty the lies would sound to his war-weary people. He wondered how many bastard daughters would be born out of his defeat.

Nabooru crouched in Ganondorf’s line of sight and watched him while the soldier tightened the knots. Her long red hair was half-out of its tie. She fell to retightening it while balancing on the balls of her feet. 

The question ate at Ganondorf. “Why?” he asked her as she worked.

“You have no right to the land of Hyrule,” Nabooru replied.

“No.” Ganondorf shook his head as well as he could; winced at a hard jerk on his wrists. “I mean why did you speak up for me?”

Nabooru’s hair was once more under control. She dropped her arms to her knees and regarded Ganondorf with a peculiar look. “We all have our roles in Time’s theater. You must live to perform yours.”

Ganondorf didn’t want riddles. He had heard them from Nabooru and his mothers all his short life. He gritted his teeth and prepared a harsh retort. A cloth gag choked it back, and Nabooru moved out of his sight. 

The soldier pulled Ganondorf to his feet. It was slow going; there was barely enough slack around Ganondorf’s ankles to allow him to walk. It forced him to keep his eyes open to maintain balance. The face of every slain warrior burned into his mind. Blood on the walls spelled out his people’s defeat. 

Outside, the sun baked the corpses strewn around the fortress’s grounds. Ganondorf turned away from a gutted Gerudo and fixed his yellow eyes on a broad man sitting atop a brown horse. The man was surrounded by an entourage of mounted soldiers. Banners bearing the crest of the Royal Family hung limp in the still, desert air. A kick forced Ganondorf to his knees. He dropped to the sandy earth and bowed his head to King Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule.

The great king shifted atop his horse to peer down at Ganondorf. “My man tells me you’ve yielded?”

The gag was ripped from Ganondorf’s mouth, and a gauntleted hand knocked the back of his head. He could have done without the prompt. “I yield to you, King Daphnes,” Ganondorf confirmed. “I pledge my service and self to you.”

A horse dropped dung. Someone’s scream bounced off the fortress’s stone façade. The wound in Ganondorf’s shin panged, reminding him it was still there.

“I accept your allegiance, Ganondorf of the Gerudo,” King Daphnes said. “You will accompany me to Hyrule Castle where you will assist in the execution of a treaty with your people.”

“And after?” Ganondorf asked. “My lord?” he added, almost forgetting.

“You pledged your service,” King Daphnes reminded him. “I’ll hold you to that vow.”

“Yes, my lord. Thank you, my lord.”

The king nodded in approval of the deference. “Captain Viscen, pull the men back and leave the Gerudo to bury their dead. This war is over.”

_“This_ war, perhaps,” spoke a voice to Ganondorf’s right. He turned his head and saw a lick of flame peter out in midair. The return of the gag forced his head forward again. He followed the Hylian soldiers to a waiting prison cart that was to be his transport to the next act of his life.


	2. Unbearable Circumstances

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Our hero and his twin brother are introduced, along with their unofficial mentor, and one of the young Hylians makes for a dangerous place.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you're continuing to read, thank you! Feedback and kudos are always appreciated.
> 
> Please enjoy, thank you.

# In the Shade of a Hero

### Unbearable Circumstances

“And you believe this?”

“For the last time, _yes._ Gan told us, didn’t he? And you know he’s always right about weird stuff.”

“I just don’t think it’s safe. And anyway, I don’t even believe in the Skull Kid.”

“What? How can you not?”

“Have _you_ ever seen him?”

“Um…”

“I rest my case.”

“Shut up, Link! He’s real, okay?”

“Darcel…”

_“He’s real.”_

Link’s last word on the pointless argument was a sigh. He directed it up into his blonde bangs, and his blue eyes rolled for good measure. His gaze caught sight of the sun, now past its midday point. The shadows on the ground were lengthening again. Link stood in one such shadow under one of the many trees dotting Hyrule Field. He could feel the rough trunk through his back, and each intake of breath brought a woodsy smell. 

The sunlight filtered through the tree’s eaves and speckled Link with shifting spots of light. They revealed a faint trace of freckling on his cheeks and nose. The latter feature had the noble bridge of the Hylian race that Link and his twin brother were a part. Long, pointed ears were to either side of his head--another Hylian trait. In a little less than eight years, the ears would be pierced as a sign of Link’s passing into the beginning of manhood. 

For now, the ears only twitched in annoyance when Link saw his brother take a step toward the tunnel mouth not far from the twins’ position. “Are you sure this is a good idea?”

Darcel spun around on the balls of his feet and fixed a challenging glare on his twin brother. They were born ten years ago, and Link was first by five minutes. Perhaps that gave him the idea he could exercise control over his brother, but Darcel didn’t appreciate being babied around. Because of Link’s well-meaning but roughly portrayed concern, Darcel had grown up to be the more rebellious of the two brothers. When people failed to tell them apart by looks, Darcel would reveal himself through his sharp tongue. 

The twins maintained some individuality in their manners of dress as well. Link was partial to earth tones, and his brother leaned toward richer shades--blues, purples, blacks, and reds. “They’re royal colors,” Darcel was fond of saying. He imagined himself as someone from much more affluent beginnings than that of a carpenter’s son.

Yet he and Link were not even that anymore. They were the sons of a widow of a carpenter. Armand--the twins’ father--died years ago during a construction accident in Kakariko Village. A chunk of rotted wood disengaged from a derelict structure Armand and his men were stabilizing. One of the Royal Family’s representatives, overseeing the start of the project, would have died if Armand hadn’t tackled him out of the way. In doing so, the carpenter sealed his own fate under the falling debris.

Link remembered the days after his father’s death. He and Darcel were only six at the time. Link remembered a coffin in a hole, and the confusion he felt when his father failed to come home. Later, there was acceptance when he understood death to a better degree. 

Darcel claimed to have no recollection of the death. Link had a strong hunch his brother kept the memory buried for the sake of his sanity. He only wished his mother, Raine, could do the same. She was drinking through the generous sum of rupees the Royal Family had paid her in honor of Armand’s heroics. They had also given the family a hand-carved wooden plague with an inscription of Armand’s birth and death rates beneath a brass relief of Din, one of the three goddesses who protected Hyrule.

Link always caught himself admiring the plaque when he was alone in the room where it was kept. He was the one who kept it clean, and whenever he swept away the dust from Din, it was as if he was seeing her for the first time. As the goddess that represented strength, power, and hard work, along with the rewards they brought, Din was portrayed in the bas-relief with a hammer in one hand and a pick in the other. Her beautiful, stern face was cast down in sorrow at the flowers that sprung up around her feet.

Link wished he could have even a small bit of Din’s power. Perhaps with it, he could help his floundering family; Darcel, with his rebellious nature and moodiness, and Raine, with her fading sense of reality. She was on a spiraling descent to bottom, and she would drag her sons down with her if Link couldn’t do something to stop it.

Despite the hardships, Link and Darcel found ways to enjoy their lives. Their father’s death had brought them into contact with the Royal Family--specifically, Princess Zelda, who was of equal age to the twins. Since that first meeting, the three children had maintained a strong friendship. It was a common sight to see them playing together in the castle halls or gardens.

People in town talked, of course. They found it shameful that the low-born twins considered themselves on equal footing with the princess. The fact that King Daphnes encouraged the friendship further appalled the people. Zelda, like her friends, had lost a parent--her mother, Elena, to sickness. The king felt this shared hardship brought the children closer together.

_“Children lose their parents every day,”_ the people often whispered. _“Should they too be entitled to royal handouts?”_

“You’re thinking too hard again.”

Link started out of his thoughts to see Darcel’s glare had softened to a look of concern. “You really need to stop thinking so much,” Darcel continued. “You always look sad when you do.”

Link forced a laugh. “If I stopped thinking, people really wouldn’t be able to tell us apart.”

Whether or not Darcel grasped the jibe, he understood he was being mocked. He turned forward with a slight _hmph_ and faced the tunnel that cut through the thick trees edging the southeast border of Hyrule Field. Beyond the tunnel laid the fabled Lost Woods, a thick manifestation of trees and magic that was--supposedly--guarded by a powerful spirit. Legends claimed this spirit was the source of the magic in the Lost Woods. The spirit used its raw power to protect the southeastern border. Another rumor said a race of long-lived forest people lived alongside the spirit. No one could claim to have seen this mysterious race. If they existed, the people were well-hidden amongst the twisting paths and occasional ruin that dotted the Lost Woods.

One Lost Woods tale was that of the Skull Kid, a mischievous imp said to reside within the woods. The imp attacked outsiders, or led them deeper into the woods where they succumbed to the curse that lay over the land. People who got lost in the Lost Woods turned into stalfos: dead, mindless skeletons that walked as if alive, dressed in the rags of their human clothes. Unlike the Skull Kid or the forest people, the stalfos were a confirmed truth. It was common to hear stories of the skeletons wandering Hyrule Field, or returning to their homes as if propelled by a remnant memory.

Ganondorf told Link and Darcel of the Skull Kid the previous day. Ganondorf was a Gerudo; the sole male born in the last hundred years to the group of female warriors who lived in the western desert. Gerudo lands were not a part of Hyrule, and the two kingdoms had made war years ago. As a result of his loss, Ganondorf was forced to give up his kingship and go into service for Hyrule. His duties nowadays often placed him at the post by the outer gate leading into the castle grounds. Link and Darcel always spared a few minutes to talk to him upon arriving and leaving the castle. The twins admired him for their separate reasons. Link was in awe of the man’s physical prowess and status as a guard. Darcel liked his devil-may-care attitude.

There was more than simple hero worship, however. Fatherless and with a mother who was becoming increasingly unfit to raise them, the twins floundered to grow up healthy in the world. No one had time to take on the role of guardian for a pair of low-born boys. Yet Ganondorf found the time. He took a shining to the boys. He encouraged them to keep up with their schooling, and his dropped name was enough to protect them from most dangers in town. He told the boys secrets of the castle, and he always had ready a fascinating story or a thrilling account of bravery.

The one thing Link didn’t like was Ganondorf filling Darcel’s head with dangerous myths, even if he himself was curious about the possible existence of the Skull Kid. Link had to be the more level-headed one between his brother and himself. The stalfos curse was a real one, as was the confusing maze that lay within the Lost Woods.

“Darcel!” Link snapped when his brother took a step toward the tunnel. “Let’s go home.”

Darcel looked over his shoulder at Link. His expression was scrunched with annoyance. “I want to find the Skull Kid.”

“You’ll find your death instead if you go into those woods,” Link warned. “No one who’s ever gone in there has come out the same way. They either disappear or turn into stalfos. Now let’s go.”

Darcel turned his head forward, crossed his arms tight across his chest, and hunched his shoulders. Link sighed and stepped out of the shadow of the tree. “What is it?” he asked when he reached his brother’s side. Darcel muttered a few indiscernible words under his breath. “What?”

Darcel relaxed his shoulders and tilted his eyes up toward the sky. “I don’t want to go home. _She’s_ there.”

_“Mother,_ Darcel,” Link corrected. Darcel had recently picked up the annoying habit of referring to Raine only as _she_ or _her,_ and always in a tone of hatred.

Darcel shook his head at the sky. _“She_ is not our mother. Not anymore.” He dropped his chin and focused a pained look onto Link. “Can we run away?”

Despite the sorrow for his brother twisting his gut, Link managed a laugh. “No. Sorry.” He slung a friendly arm over Darcel’s shoulders. Together, they turned away from the Lost Woods and picked up one of the dirt paths that crossed the small Hyrule Field. Distantly, to the left of the towering Death Mountain, the white stone curtain wall that protected Hyrule Castle Town shined in the sun. It was a beacon guiding the twins toward home. They mentally resisted its beckoning with each step.

#

Hyrule’s market square filled the boys’ eyes, noses, and ears when they passed through it on their way home. The crisp smell of fresh produce mingled with cigarette smoke and cooking meats. Commoners’ sweat clashed with the oiled cleanliness of armored soldiers. Bodies pressed close together, calling prices and negotiating trades. The music of bards floated between hanging pennants and the busy heads of the crowd. Everywhere there was movement and flashes of color, and it pushed and pulled at the twins until they were through to the other side.

A narrow alley was the start of the twisting path to Hyrule’s low district. Here, there was only the color palette of dirt and shadows, and the sounds of violent arguments cut the air like knives. The homes were packed close together, or stacked upon one another as small units. The strong scents of urine, blood, and cheap sex permeated the broken streets and alleys. Once, Link and Darcel knew a nicer home in the artisans’ section of town. Now there was a crooked door with a rusted number nailed to it.

“Home sweet home,” Link said in a miserable voice. He tried the knob and found it unlocked. That meant Raine was home. Darcel dragged his feet over the threshold. His brother was forced to tug sharply on him in order to clear him of the door’s arc. Link was still working on the door’s stubborn lock when he felt Darcel press close to him. Link turned to see his mother standing in the doorway of the unit’s small kitchen.

Unlike her sons--who took after their late father--Raine had auburn-hair and green eyes. Her face was all hard lines and gaunt skin--the result of too much drinking, and not enough food and sleep. Whatever modesty she’d had at the side of one of Hyrule’s best carpenters was lost to her grief. She stood before her sons in a thinning slip and nothing more.

Raine regarded her sons from behind bleary eyes. “Where have you two been all morning?” she asked in a low, deadly voice. Her words were always clear, even in inebriation, and they often cut when she was in one of her common foul moods. Raine’s right hand was clasped around the neck of a heavy bottle of liquor. She lifted it and tilted it back to take a deep swig. Her eyes never left Link.

Darcel was useless. He both hated and feared his mother. He could only cower, half-hidden behind his brother. Link took up his familiar cue, hoping his calm nature would avert any violence. “We were playing, Mother. That’s all. We were just playing.”

Raine sneered. “With that good-for-nothing _princess?”_

Darcel shifted and murmured something. Link himself bit his tongue against a retort. He wanted to remind his mother that it was the grace of the Royal Family that had supplied the bottle in her hand. Instead, he replied, “No. We went to Lake Hylia, and then we were in Hyrule Field for a little.”

_“Lollygagging around while your mother suffered alone in this dump!”_ Raine’s voice was a banshee’s shriek. She raised the bottle again and threw it at her sons.

Darcel tensed with a scream, but Link was quicker to act. He spun around and shielded Darcel with his body. The heavy bottle hit the back of Link’s shoulder and shattered against it. Pain sparked across his upper back, and he staggered forward. A quick hand against the door prevented Link from crushing his brother.

Raine shrieked and stormed out of sight with curses falling from her lips. Only when Link heard Raine’s bedroom door slam shut did he finally relax with relief. “Are you okay?” he asked Darcel.

Darcel’s eyes widened. “You’re asking _me_ that when _you_ just got hit with a glass bottle?”

Link offered a brave smile. “It doesn’t hurt that bad,” he said. It remained the truth until he pushed his hand away from the wall and straightened up. The muscles protested, and the thick scent of the alcohol that had soaked Link’s shirt hit his nose. He grimaced with a stifled sound of pain that Darcel picked up.

“You idiot,” Darcel remarked, kindly. “Come on, Link, let’s get you cleaned up.”

Link changed out of his soiled clothes and hopped into a cold bath while Darcel filled a wash basin with soapy water and scrubbed the clothes clean. They were rung out and hanging to dry in the small bedroom the boys shared when Link entered the room in a clean set of clothes. There was a distracted look of pain on his face, and he rubbed at the back of his left shoulder. Before he could sit down on his small bed, Darcel intercepted him.

“Let me see,” Darcel demanded. Link cast his eyes to the side and didn’t comply. His right hand was clamped tight on the hill of his left shoulder. Darcel physically turned Link around and forced his shirt up. Over the bulge of the left wing blade, a dark bruise stained Link’s skin. Darcel cursed. 

Link tossed a look of warning over his shoulder. “You’re too young to be saying that.”

“Shut the hell up,” Darcel retorted, and Link sighed. “This looks painful.” Link grunted an agreement, and Darcel made a decision. “I’m getting you a fairy.”

Link jerked out from beneath Darcel’s probing fingers. His eyes were wild and pleading when he turned to look at his brother. “Darcel, no. We can’t afford it. I’m fine, really. It’ll go away in a few days.”

“You protected me,” Darcel argued. “You were stupid to do it, but I’m not going to let you suffer because of it. I have some rupees I keep hidden from _her._ I’ll use them to buy you a fairy.”

“Darcel--”

“Shut up and let me do this.” Darcel’s words were hard and final. A blush touched his cheeks.

Link didn’t argue anymore. He could see it now. Darcel was ashamed of letting Link take a hit for him. This was his way of saving face. Link nodded and murmured a thank you.

Darcel moved to the door. “I’ll be back soon,” he promised as he left the room. 

#

The market square was just as busy as before. Darcel took his time marking the kiosks, picking up a few stones from the ground along the way. He was looking for one merchant in particular. He found it after a few minutes’ searching. An array of goods was spread over the counter: potions, arrows, a finely-crafted Hylian shield, and a few bottled fairies. Darcel eyed these latter for a moment before raising a contemplating look to the glass jar sitting in the middle of the counter.

Scrawled on a piece of paper tied to the jar were the words **‘Remember Your Honor’**. Within the jar was an assortment of rupees. From this jar Darcel turned his eyes to the merchant. It was a mid-aged man with a black blindfold that covered his eyes. Hints of scars could be seen above and below the fabric. 

Everyone in town knew this merchant as Blind Allen. He was once a member of the king’s private guard. He lost his eyes--and his ability to serve--when he fell into a grotto one morning while accompanying the king. Within the grotto was a colony of keese that attacked him, gouging out his eyes in the process. Blind Allen now occupied his time by running a stall every day. Payment was by the honor system, and the people respected him enough for his sacrifice to never think of shorting him what he was due.

Darcel put his hand into the pocket of his worn pants and fingered the stones he had picked up. “How much for a fairy, Al?”

Blind Allen turned his sightless face toward his newest browser. “Is that the young master Darcel I hear?”

“The one and only,” Darcel confirmed. Blind Allen called every child ‘young master’, or ‘young mistress’.

“I thought so,” Blind Allen said with a smile. “Are you interested in something?”

“A fairy.”

“Ah. Oh. I hope you’re not hurt.”

“Not me. My brother. He got hit in the shoulder.” Darcel shifted on his feet. “So how much?”

“They usually run fifty rupees,” Blind Allen replied. “However, I know you’re a good lad and you have troubles with money. You may have one for five rupees.”

Darcel’s hand convulsed around the stones in his pocket. “Thanks, Al,” he muttered. He brought the stones out and dropped them into the jar. They clinked against the other rupees with a convincing sound.

“Take care of your brother, young master Darcel. And yourself as well.” Blind Allen’s smile dropped some. 

Darcel managed a reply before he took one of the bottled fairies from the counter. He moved away on fast feet, looking back only once. Blind Allen had the jar in hand, and he was picking out the stones from amongst the rupees.

Darcel failed to look forward in time to avoid a collision with a castle guard. Soft cheek met hard armor, and Darcel rebounded with a startled cry. The bottled fairy nearly fell from his hands; he juggled it to maintain his grip. Once the bottle was secure against Darcel’s chest, he looked up with a scowl on his face. “Watch where you’re standing!”

Ganondorf’s green-brown face looked down at Darcel with amusement in the yellow eyes. “Is that how you speak to a man of the guard, kid?”

Darcel relaxed. “Oh, it’s just you, Gan.”

“Just me, huh?” Ganondorf laughed a little and ran a hand through his dark red hair. His eyes scanned the crowd that was flowing around him and the boy. “What’s the hurry, Darcel?”

Darcel lifted the bottled fairy for a brief moment. “Link got hurt, so I bought him this.”

“Bought or stole?” Ganondorf asked. Darcel blushed, and Ganondorf laughed again. “Kid, if you’re going to be a thief, you need to work on not giving your crime away on your face.” 

Darcel frowned. “What do you mean? What’s on my face?”

“Never mind.” Ganondorf dropped a heavy hand on Darcel’s shoulder. “How did Link get hurt?”

A shadow crept into Darcel’s eyes. His fingers clenched around the smooth contours of the bottle. _“She_ threw a bottle at him.”

“Poor kid.” Ganondorf’s words were low, and he winced. “Well, come on. I’ll walk you home. A kid your age shouldn’t be alone in the low district. There are too many criminals who would want to get their hands on a blonde-haired, blue-eyed boy like you for one reason or another.”

“Such as?” Darcel pressed, his eyes glimmering.

Ganondorf brushed off the curiosity with a few muttered words. His hand on Darcel’s shoulder guided the boy across the market square to the entrance of the low district. “Hey,” Ganondorf said once they were beyond the noise of the market. Darcel looked up at him. “Did you ever find that Skull Kid I was telling you about?”

The diversion only worsened Darcel’s sour attitude. “No,” he grumbled. “Link wouldn’t let me go into the woods. He’s always trying to protect me--that’s how he got hurt today. I wish he’d stop it. I’m just as old as him. I can take care of myself.”

“Of course you can,” Ganondorf agreed. Darcel’s chest swelled. “But that stalfos curse is real. So maybe it’s a good thing that Link stopped you from entering the Lost Woods.”

“I wouldn’t get lost,” Darcel insisted. “And if I went into the woods and came back out, no one would think I was a just little kid anymore. I could be famous. People would give me lots of rupees to hear my story. I could be just like the bards in the market square. Then I could get me and Link a house at Lake Hylia or something.”

Ganondorf grinned at the ambitious plans. “Is that so? Well, I wish you luck with that, Darcel. I can promise you’ll always have an open ear in me.”

The residents of the low district gave Darcel and his uniformed escort a wide berth, and they arrived at their destination without incident. Ganondorf parted with a wave and a well-wish for a better evening. Darcel watched him until he was out of sight.

Like his brother, Darcel struggled with the front door’s stubborn lock; more so, for his left hand was occupied with holding the bottled fairy. He never knew Raine was moving out of the kitchen toward him until he felt the blunt fall of her fist on the back of his neck. For a second time, the fairy was nearly lost in Darcel’s fumbling hands. He spun around to run, and another fist found his cheek.

_“Vile little brat!”_ Raine screamed. Her fists shot out again and again, finding their mark nearly every time. _“You look just like your father! You worthless child! Why can’t you be more like Link? He’s not like your father at all! He would never be foolish enough to die and abandon us!”_

_“Link looks just like me!”_ Darcel screamed back. _“And Dad didn’t abandon us!”_ His cries fell on deaf ears. A small opening on the right allowed him to slip away before he could be killed by Raine’s fury. Her screams followed him to his bedroom. 

Link waited within the bedroom, tense and wearing a look of concern. “Din, Nayru, Farore, what did she do to you?” He stood up and walked to where Darcel was regaining his breath against the door. His brother’s nose was bleeding, and one eye was already puffing up. Despite this, Darcel thrust the bottled fairy into Link’s hands.

Link pushed the bottle back against Darcel’s chest. “No. You’re hurt more than me. I… I heard what she said. She has no right to say those things to you.”

Darcel took back the fairy, but he didn’t uncork the bottle. He walked to the other side of the room and placed it on the small nightstand that sat between his and Link’s beds. “I don’t need your concern,” Darcel snapped after sitting down on the edge of his bed. He used his sleeve to wipe away the blood from his nose. “I can take care of myself. I don’t want your protection.”

“We’re brothers,” Link said with a roll of his eyes. “We look out for each other.”

“I don’t want your protection!” Darcel repeated, sharper. He kicked at the nightstand; the bottle atop it wobbled. “Take the fairy.”

It took only a moment for Link to come up with a better idea. “We’ll release it, and the fairy can decide if it wants to heal one of us.” He walked to the nightstand and picked up the bottle. While Darcel looked on, curious, Link threw the bottle at the far wall. It shattered and fell to the floor in glimmering pieces, yet the fairy remained aloft. It hovered for a few seconds before lazily flitting about the room. It settled on a shelf between two books.

Link dropped down onto his bed. “Well, that’s that.”

Darcel scoffed low and lay down. He folded his arms behind his head and regarded the ceiling with a sour expression. “Can we run away now?”

Link shook his head. “No.”

“Why? Wouldn’t it be better in the long run? Hell, I’d rather be a stalfos than stay here another day.”

“Darcel, please stop. You know we’re better off with a roof over our heads than homeless on the street.”

Darcel turned away from Link. “Better off how?”

The hours dragged. Link occupied himself with reading. Darcel fidgeted in his bed for an hour before falling into sleep. Link thought about waking him. If Darcel slept now, he wouldn’t be able to sleep later when it was time for bed. He decided it wasn’t worth the hassle of listening to Darcel’s curses and grumbles. He returned to his reading with a slight shake of his head. Now and then, Link spared a glance for the fairy on the bookshelf. It appeared content; its bluish-white glow waxed and waned in calm waves. Link wondered why it didn’t fly away. The bedroom’s small window was open. Perhaps it was weak from being bottled, and was regaining its strength. 

The sun slipped lower, and the fairy’s glow grew more pronounced against the shadows that filled the bedroom. Link’s eyelids grew heavier the more he watched the fairy. His book fell to his chest, and from there to the floor where it collapsed into a lopsided tent. The sound of the book’s flop didn’t stir Link, yet the sound of a slamming door in the early morning did. Link opened his eyes and yawned, having already recognized the sound as a sign of his mother’s departure. He looked outside to be sure, and he saw Raine marching away from the house. Link turned forward again and sought out the bookshelf. The fairy was gone. He nodded, satisfied, and turned to Darcel’s bed.

It was empty.

Link frowned. Darcel was a notoriously late sleeper. He scanned the bed as if in hopes his brother would materialize from beneath the flat blanket. The sight of a note on the pillow twisted his gut. Link rolled out of bed and picked the note up. His mind raced ahead, laying out the inevitable words before he read them.

**_Link,_ **

**_I’m sorry. I can’t do this anymore. If you’re smart, you’ll join me. I’m going into the Lost Woods. She won’t find me there. I’ll make it on my own. The curse won’t get to me._ **

**_If you decide not to follow me, then this is goodbye._ **

**_-Darcel_ **

Link was dressed and out of the house in less than five minutes. His way was clear, but he couldn’t go into the Lost Woods alone. He needed help.

#

The morning sun baked Ganondorf in his armor. He relished the warmth. It reminded him of the desert; his home until the unfortunate war against Hyrule. He hadn’t set foot on Gerudo land in over a decade. He had only two tokens from his homeland: a stallion, and a small bottle of sand, decorated with a feather, hanging around his neck. It was smuggled to him a year into his service by a loyal Gerudo visiting Castle Town. The latter token was insignificant enough that he wasn’t suspected of treason for carrying it. Even so, it had taken this long to be trusted enough with perimeter guard duty, where a dozen set of eyes weren’t on him at all times.

In some ways, Ganondorf was glad for the lost war. Hyrule was good to him for the most part. After the war, the king helped to rebuild and resupply the Gerudo territories alongside his own kingdom. A treaty was struck, placing Nabooru as queen of the Gerudo and opening trade between the two lands. Gerudo were once more allowed to roam Hyrule, and few people looked twice at Ganondorf anymore. He was no longer feared, but he was respected, and he was moving up in the ranks. In all, Ganondorf often thought, it could be much worse.

The Hylian woman in front of Ganondorf wanted inside the castle grounds, and the only way in was through the gate that he was currently guarding. The Gerudo listened to the Hylian’s story of how her toddler was stolen by a stalchild in the middle of the night. She wanted to speak to the king about seeking and killing the monster so that her child might be saved.

“Your child is likely a stalchild himself by now,” Ganondorf said. He relaxed against the wall of the gate; his issued glaive rested lightly in his hands. “You say he was stolen last night? I’m sorry, but there’s no chance he’s still alive, and so there’s no reason for you to speak to the king.”

“Please, let me try anyway!” the woman begged. “Something must be done about these monsters!”

Several replies came to Ganondorf’s mind. Why did this mother allow her child to wander away into the field? What did she expect to get back if soldiers managed to find any traces of her child? Did she have any idea how many people came to this gate begging for some action, for some allowance to speak to the king, for any compassion from the high-born?

Instead of these questions or others, Ganondorf asked, “Do you have ten rupees?”

Though she was perhaps negligent, the Hylian woman was no fool. A yellow rupee was passed to Ganondorf, who made it disappear with the subtlety of a well-trained Gerudo thief. The gate clacked open moments later, and the woman passed through with a signed pass in her hand. Ganondorf called out to her and she turned back. “It’s a secret to everybody,” he reminded her, touching the side of his nose. 

The woman nodded. Ganondorf closed the gate and resumed his relaxed position by it. 

_“Gan!”_

Ganondorf stiffened at the shout. Someone saw him just now. He fretted over what punishment he would receive-- _Not the chamber pots, anything but that_ \--and it wasn’t until he saw the small Hylian running toward him that he relaxed again.

Link skidded to a halt in front of Ganondorf, lost his footing, and fell. Ganondorf helped him to his feet and brushed the dirt from his clothes. “What’s going on, Link?” he asked. He could feel the boy’s body thrumming with frantic energy.

Link wiped dirt from his cheek and said in a high voice, “Darcel ran away! He ran away to the Lost Woods!”

“So why are you here?” Ganondorf asked.

“You’re going to help me track him down!” Link’s voice dropped, and he stomped a firm foot. “You’re the one who put those stupid ideas into his head about the Skull Kid. Now help me find him before it’s too late or I’ll… I’ll tell Zelda and the king that this is all your fault!”

Ganondorf sneered. Link was acting rash, but he had good reason. He and his brother were as close as… Well, as close as twins. And now Darcel was missing. Behind those furious blue eyes, Link was likely blaming himself more than Ganondorf. If the Gerudo refused to help, Link would go into the Lost Woods alone, and it wouldn’t be just one twin who would perish.

“All right,” Ganondorf agreed. “Wait here. I’ll get my horse.”

“Thank you!” Link’s anger faded into pure gratitude. He embraced Ganondorf’s legs until the Gerudo gently disengaged him.

Ganondorf’s mount was a large, black stallion bred and raised in the Gerudo desert. The stallion’s eyes and temper were fiery. Only Ganondorf could control the beast. When it trotted to a stop in front of Link, he shrunk away from it.

“Come on, Link.” Ganondorf offered an open hand from his position in the saddle. “We have no time to waste. With every hour that Darcel spends in those woods, he’ll lose more and more of himself until only bones are left.”

Link nodded a grim understanding of the circumstances. He accepted the hand, and Ganondorf lifted him up into the saddle as if he was nothing more than a bag of feathers. Link settled behind the Gerudo and wrapped tight arms around his larger chest. No sooner was he secure did Ganondorf spur the stallion into a gallop. The castle town flew by in a blur of color and startled noise as Ganondorf and Link sped toward Hyrule Field and the Lost Woods beyond it.


	3. Lost and Found

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Link and Ganondorf venture into the Lost Woods to seek out Darcel. Yet what they find may not be what they're looking for.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some brief Gerudian is spoken in this chapter, but it's nowhere near the extent that is in _Blue Arrow._
> 
> Kudos and feedback are always appreciated, thanks!
> 
> Please enjoy.

# In the Shade of a Hero

### Lost and Found

Link clung tight to Ganondorf with his arms around the Gerudo’s waist and his cheek pressed against the man’s back. His eyes were closed, and his attention was focused on the clops of the horse’s hooves against the ground. It was a subpar distraction from the worries running through his mind. First and foremost was the horrible fate that would befall Darcel if he wasn’t rescued in time. There were too many factors already in Link’s and Ganondorf’s disfavor. There was no way to know when, exactly, Darcel had entered the woods. It could be minutes ago… or hours ago. And how were Link and Ganondorf supposed to not only find Darcel in the expansive Lost Woods, but also find their way back out without falling victim to the woods’ magic?

Link was jarred out of his thoughts when the thrum of the horse’s hooves changed. It first slowed before stopping when the stallion whinnied and planted its hooves. Link’s eyes shot open. The horse was tilting up beneath him. He hurried to tighten his grip around Ganondorf’s waist, yet already he was slipping out of the saddle. He hit the ground with a cry.

A shadow fell over Link. He looked up to see the horse’s hooves bearing down on him. Link curled up with a scream and covered his head. The ground trembled when the hooves came down on either side of him. Dirt was kicked up into his closed face, and he flinched with a whimper.

_“Hete! Hete, tuat dumat bestit!”_ Ganondorf’s Gerudian tongue cracked the air. He maneuvered the panicked horse away from Link and dismounted. After the reins were secured around a low branch of a nearby tree, he returned to where the young Hylian lay on the ground. “Get up,” Ganondorf ordered, still with some bite to his words.

Link unfolded his body and gained his feet. His limbs shook with lingering fear, and his throat felt dry. It was difficult to speak at first, but he managed to ask, “What happened?”

“We’re here,” Ganondorf replied. He jabbed a thumb over his shoulder at the tunnel, formed by a large fallen tree that cut into the woods behind him. “Torrent panicked,” he went on to explain. “Animals seem to know better than us that there’s something _off_ about these woods.”

Link looked at the stallion. Its fiery pupils showed a ring of white around them. It kept pulling the tethered reins taut with sharp jerks of its head. “Do you think it’s safe to go in?” Link asked.

“Of course it’s not safe!” Ganondorf snapped back. Link quailed, and Ganondorf forced himself to relax. “Sorry, Link. Being this close to the woods…” He shook his head. “Anyway, that’s why we’re here. We need to get Darcel out. So let’s get moving.”

Ganondorf led Link into the Lost Woods, and when the cool shadows of the trees fell over the young Hylian, he felt a chill run up his spine. In silence, he followed Ganondorf’s tall form into the tunnel. Darkness reigned for a short while where only the slight echoes of footsteps could be heard. Daylight soon bloomed at the tunnel’s end. Link hurried toward it, relief spurring him past Ganondorf. He stopped when he came out into the small clearing on the other side of the tunnel.

Beyond the clearing grew an endless sea of rough tree trunks, topped by a canopy of dark green leaves that blocked out all but the faintest glow of sunlight. There was only silence within the woods. There were no singing birds, or the rustle of underbrush in a creature’s wake. There were breezes, and tree branches moved, but their leaves didn’t whisper like the trees in Hyrule Field. Still, Link could feel something. It was all around him. It pressed against his skin like a cool hand. More than once he looked down or to the side, sure that only a second ago someone was standing beside him; touching him. He shuddered hard and cast an uneasy look at Ganondorf. “This is eerie.”

Ganondorf raised a wide hand to the back of his neck. His yellow gaze mirrored his younger companion’s discomfort. “I agree. I don’t like it here. Let’s get this done and over with quickly.” His eyes cast around the edge of the clearing. “Darcel must have come through this same entrance. Look for a path he made through the woods, or maybe a scrap of clothing that got caught on a branch.”

Link and Ganondorf separated to opposite ends of the clearing where they worked a slow circle clockwise, scoping out every inch of underbrush and dirt edging the area. It was Ganondorf who found a clue: a scrap of black fabric stuck to a sapling. Link confirmed it as belonging to the shirt Darcel wore the day before. 

“He fell asleep in his clothes,” Link said. A thought occurred to him, and he looked up from the scrap of fabric with a gasp. “Do you think… Could he have been planning this for a while? He kept talking about running away, and he went to bed early yesterday…”

“We don’t have time to speculate right now,” Ganondorf said. He pocketed the black fabric. “We can get the story from Darcel once we find him.”

_“If_ we find him,” Link corrected in a small voice.

Ganondorf patted Link’s shoulder as he peered into the depths of the Lost Woods. “I can make out a faint path through the underbrush. He was here, and recently. The woods haven’t had time to fully close up the trail he made.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Link asked. Ganondorf took the lead along the path, and he followed. “Are you saying the Lost Woods is _alive?”_ As soon as the question was asked, Link heard his own internal voice answer, _Of course it is._ Someone touched his back. He turned his head. The thin path behind him was empty.

Ganondorf pushed aside a thick branch so that Link could pass by it. “There’s a deep magic here, Link,” he said after he took the lead again. “Stay close by me, and keep your eyes and ears open for danger.”

Ganondorf’s body made a plenty-wide path for Link to follow through the woods. The Gerudo was quiet as his eyes scanned the ground in front of him with intensity. Despite his vigilance, he was sometimes forced to stop Link in order to cast around for the trail when it branched off into a new direction. 

“Did they teach you how to track when you became a castle guard?” Link asked Ganondorf. It felt good to talk. The silence of the woods was oppressing. 

Ganondorf shook his head. “I learned that and other things when I was growing up in the west desert. I would have learned a lot more if the war hadn’t spoiled everything. My mothers were going to start teaching me more powerful magic, for one.”

Link hopped over a thick branch. “That must be nice, having two mothers.” His face betrayed sadness for a moment. “Why don’t you learn from them now that the war is over?” 

“I’m not allowed back to the desert,” Ganondorf replied. “I haven’t seen my mothers in ten years. They promised to keep in touch, but... Well, it’s probably better that they didn’t.”

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s not your fault, kid. And like I said, it’s fine. They’re more trouble than they’re worth.”

“But you miss the desert, don’t you? That’s why you wear that charm around your neck, right?”

Ganondorf was saved from having to answer. Something caught his eye, and he pointed to the base of a tree where the grass was oddly flat. “Darcel rested here, but not for long.” Ganondorf kicked aside broken roots, murmured something, and continued on. “He was moving faster,” the Gerudo relayed to the Hylian behind him. “See how some of these branches are snapped? If Darcel was walking, the branches would have bent back as he passed by them. He was panicking.” 

“Any…” Link’s throat tightened. “…blood?”

“Not yet,” Ganondorf said. He stopped and stepped to the right, leaving the thin path clear for Link to see. “Link, try calling for him.”

Link sucked in a deep breath. _“DARCEL! ANSWER ME!”_

“Good set of lungs,” Ganondorf remarked with a grimace. He and Link stilled to listen for an answer. None came; the woods had swallowed Link’s call. “Well, it was worth a shot. Come on. The wick of these snapped branches is still fresh. Darcel passed through here within the last hour.”

Link’s heart leapt. Only an hour. Darcel wasn’t far away. Perhaps he was all right after all! “Hurry!” Link urged Ganondorf. With a nod, the Gerudo once more picked up the trail. Link followed on lighter feet. He couldn’t wait to see his twin brother’s smiling face again; to see Darcel whole and unharmed.

A movement in Link’s right peripheral stopped him dead. It was a strange thing to detect movement, for the entirety of the Lost Woods retained silence and stillness. Link turned his head to the right and caught a fleeting glimpse of something behind a distant tree trunk. Was it a person?

“Darcel?” Link called. His intention was to shout the name, but his voice came out as a mere whisper that was sucked up by the greedy trees. While Ganondorf continued along Darcel’s vague trail, Link stepped off of the path for the first time. He shifted through the underbrush toward the place where he had seen movement. “Darcel, is that you?” Link’s voice trembled. “Please answer me. Listen, you need to come home--”

“You must leave.”

Link stopped his approach, taken aback. The voice was feminine. “Who’s there?” Link asked after a moment’s contemplation. He peered through the gloom and was able to pick out a pale leg bare from mid-shin down, and a small hand with a fingernail stuck between worrying teeth. Shadow obscured the rest of the figure. Link had a strange feeling, however, that the person was no older than himself. “Who are you?” Link asked, rephrasing his earlier question. 

The girl repeated her warning. “You must leave,” she urged in a whisper. “This is no place for one such as you, who is not of Kokiri blood. This wood consumes everyone. If you linger too long, the wood will sneak up on you and destroy you.”

“I _can’t_ leave,” Link said in a stern voice. “My twin brother is lost in these woods. He ran away to here from home.”

“Your twin brother… The one who looked like you?”

The past tense was not lost on Link. “What do you mean by that?” His voice sharpened when he demanded, “Tell me what you know about my brother! Tell me what happened to him!”

Instead of answering Link, the girl pointed a shadowed hand at the Hylian’s feet. “Look. See how it sneaks up on you.”

Link looked down. Tree roots were growing up over his boots. He stomped and kicked his feet, screaming in terror all the while, until the thin roots snapped away. Link staggered away from their remains and collapsed against the shadowed girl. Her chest pressed flush against his back. He stilled at the sound of soft breaths in his ears. The heady scent of the woods flooded his nose. His eyes fluttered closed, and he took a deep breath. He felt the girl’s chest expand in a deep breath as well. When she exhaled by his ear, his head lit up as every sense was overloaded. He saw for miles. His lips tasted spring water. The sun warmed him, and the wind spoke to him. 

_So you are the child of destiny,_ a deep voice said. 

Link’s hand was taken into the girl’s soft but firm grip. He opened his eyes when he was tugged forward into a rapid run. Through the patchy sunlight Link could make out a little more of the girl’s features: short hair of a strange shade, and clothes of simple design that were the color of the forest. He was too focused on not tripping over his feet to pay much more attention. 

The woods passed by in a blur. Link felt at times that he wasn’t running at all, but was being pulled through the air in the wake of the mysterious girl. The colors of the trees blended together before his eyes, and he was forced to close them to avoid getting sick. He opened them again when he felt the grip on his hand fall away. He found himself standing in a clearing--one different from where he’d originally set out with Ganondorf. And on the grass in the middle of the clearing was a still, young boy.

_“Darcel!”_

Link forgot about the girl; there was no more sign of her anyway. He ran to Darcel and skidded to a stop on his knees by his prone twin’s side. “Darcel, are you--”

Link stopped. This was his brother, but something was wrong. Darcel’s skin--once lightly tanned from frequent days spent swimming at Lake Hylia--was pale as if in death. His blonde hair was now the gray-white color of bone. And when Link pulled up an eyelid to look into his brother’s eye for signs of life, he found the bright blue of the iris was replaced by a blood-red color.

“Darcel, what’s happened to you?” Link whispered. His throat tightened, and he swallowed a sob.

The crash of underbrush signaled Ganondorf’s arrival. He had heard Link’s voice and had hurried as fast as he could toward it. “How did you get ahead of me?” the Gerudo first asked when he saw Link. His eyes found Darcel next, and they widened in alarm. “The curse has got to him. He’s turning into a stalfos.”

“No!” Link screamed. “We need to get him out of here!” He took hold of Darcel’s shoulders and tried to lift him. He could only manage to raise Darcel’s upper body off of the ground before his strength failed him. Link fell back to his knees and cried out in frustration.

Ganondorf knelt down by Darcel’s other side. “Easy,” the Gerudo soothed. He thumbed off a tear from Link’s face. His stronger arms lifted Darcel effortlessly. “He’s lost a lot of weight already. Link, we need to get him back to the castle physician. There’s no one better when it comes to curses and ailments. Now let’s go--and stay with me this time!” Ganondorf spared Link a hard glare that the boy avoided out of shame.

Ganondorf turned back into the trees with quick, long strides. Link followed, skipping every other step to keep up with the Gerudo. Darcel’s limp limbs swung with each step. “Gan, will Darcel be okay?”

Ganondorf’s answer was honest, but not reassuring. “I don’t know, Link. He’s been under the curse’s influence for far longer than us. We’ll be okay if we get out of here now. But Darcel… Well, you already can see he’s not how he used to be.”

Link bowed his head. Darcel was changed physically. Did that mean mentally as well? Would he remember everyone when he woke up? Maybe he would be a different person altogether. Or would he continue to sleep--or worse, die? Link shook these worries from his head before they could threaten to overtake him. The best thing to do right now, he decided, was to remain by Darcel’s side until things were settled one way or another. 

“Child!”

The girl’s voice was once again a whisper, yet Link caught it all the same in the silent woods. Ganondorf didn’t appear to hear it; he continued along his way as Link stopped and turned to the vague figure hidden in the gloom of the trees’ shadows.

Link narrowed his eyes in an attempt to catch a better look at the girl. His efforts were in vain, so he instead said, “Thank you. You led me to my brother.”

“He will die.”

Link’s body grew as cold as ice. He couldn’t manage a reply. As he stood stunned in the wake of the blunt pronouncement, the girl darted to him and pressed something into his palm.

“Use this. It will save him.” Her voice was the barest of whispers, and she was gone in the blink of an eye. Link raised his hand to find a purple-red mushroom sitting within it.

_“LINK!”_

Link started at Ganondorf’s voice. The Gerudo was a fair distance away by now. When the young Hylian had caught up to him, Ganondorf snarled, “We’re not here to play games, you fool! Your brother is in grave danger!”

Link regained his breath and raised the mushroom in his hand. “This will help him! It’s a mushroom from the woods. The girl said--”

“Girl? What girl? There’s been no one around but us.”

Link dropped the subject of the strange girl and once more insisted, “This will save Darcel!”

Ganondorf shifted Darcel’s body in his arms and spared the mushroom the barest of glances. “Well, it couldn’t hurt him anymore. I’ll have the physician make a potion out of it. But no amount of mushrooms will help Darcel if we don’t move faster!”

Link forced his shorter legs to move quicker. It helped Link to keep his hand within reach of Darcel’s hanging arm. The pale skin was cool to the touch, but Link kept a firm grip on his brother’s hand nonetheless. He could feel a faint pulse. It was slow, but it was there. As long as it throbbed, Link wasn’t going to give up on Darcel.

Link released his grip once he and Ganondorf cleared the tunnel out of the woods. Torrent was still tethered at the tree. The horse had calmed down and was quietly grazing by the tree’s base. Yet when Ganondorf approached the stallion with Darcel in his arms, Torrent’s head snapped up and it snorted. A frightened frenzy came over the horse again. It bucked and bit at Ganondorf until the Gerudo shifted Darcel to one arm and backhanded the horse across its snout with his free hand, as if the beast was a misbehaving child. The unorthodox method worked. The horse settled down enough for Ganondorf to mount the saddle, cursing in Gerudian all the while. He cradled Darcel’s body close to his chest, and helped Link up with his free hand.

Link spared a look at Torrent before he took Ganondorf’s offered hand. The stallion’s nostrils were flaring with each breath, and its ears were flat against its head. Was it Darcel that was putting the panic in the horse’s eyes? Link couldn’t worry about it. Every second’s delay was a second closer that Darcel drew to death. Link swallowed his apprehension and settled into the saddle behind Ganondorf. A spur was hardly needed to send Torrent barreling across Hyrule Field at a mad speed. Link shut his eyes against the nauseating blur of the landscape. His lips moved in a string of silent prayers to the Goddesses for his brother’s safety and recovery.

#

The castle physician needed no convincing to attempt a remedy with the mushroom. After a brief inspection of Darcel, the physician pronounced that he had no way to treat the boy. “It couldn’t hurt,” the physician said, unknowingly echoing Ganondorf’s words. He took the mushroom from Link. “It should be ready in a few minutes. Keep the boy in bed until then.”

The order wasn’t necessary. Darcel still had not regained consciousness, so he didn’t protest when he was tucked into a bed in one of the castle’s guest rooms. Link was allowed to stay by his brother’s side. Ganondorf dismissed himself. He was commended by King Daphnes for his role in rescuing Darcel, but he still had to face a reprimand from Captain Viscen for leaving his post without authorization. Link had little sympathy to spare for Ganondorf. He was immeasurably grateful to the guard, but all of his concern was turned to Darcel.

One other was as worried as Link. Within ten minutes of Darcel’s arrival to the castle, the young Princess Zelda rushed into the guest room with her nurse, Impa, in tow. The nurse was an imposing woman of the ancient Sheikah line; a line sworn to protect the Royal Family. She was stronger than half the men in the castle guard, and she was fiercely protective of her young charge. From his days visiting the castle, Link had learned that Impa’s stern façade was just another piece of her armor. She was a kind-hearted soul to friends and strangers alike--unless she had reason to distrust someone. 

At the moment, Impa’s stern face was fixed on Darcel’s pale one. Link saw something like sadness come to the Sheikah’s red eyes. It was a brief gleam before she turned a smile onto Link. “Princess Zelda heard the news and had to come straight over. It’s amazing Darcel has emerged still alive, but for how long…”

Zelda’s head snapped up from Darcel’s bed; tears welled up in her blue eyes. 

Link was quick to reassure the princess. “Don’t worry, Darcel will be okay. The physician is making a medicine from a mushroom I got in the woods.”

Impa raised her steel-gray eyebrows. “How did you know the mushroom would help?”

It was impossible to lie to Impa. She would read the real story on Link’s face no matter how hard he tried to hide it. “There… There was this girl. I didn’t get a good look at her, but I think she was around my age. She led me to Darcel, and she gave me the mushroom, too. She said it would save him.”

A small, knowing smile touched Impa’s lips, and she said, “You met one of the Kokiri.”

Link’s jaw fell open. “They’re _real?”_ he croaked. Now that he thought back on his short conversation with the mysterious girl, he could remember her mentioning something about ‘Kokiri blood’. 

Impa looked ready to satiate Link’s curiosity, but before she could say anything more, the physician arrived with a vial of purple potion in his hand. Link and Zelda moved away from the bed and took up a position close together. They looked on as Impa helped the physician feed the medicine to Darcel. The boy’s mouth was forced open, and the potion was slowly tipped in. He swallowed automatically, and in little time the vial was empty. The physician left shortly after, warning those gathered that there was no guarantee the medicine would work. Link moved back to the side of Darcel’s bed, his curiosity about the Kokiri forgotten. Zelda took up a post on the opposite side. 

Impa’s voice broke the quiet with reluctance. “Link, your mother should be informed of this. Just in case…” She let the sentence hang.

Link shrugged a shoulder without taking his eyes off of Darcel’s closed face. “I don’t know where she spends her days. She always leaves early in the morning, and she usually doesn’t come back until dinnertime.”

“Usually, but not always? She could be home right now.” Impa saw Link’s shoulders hunch. “Link, please--”

“I’m staying with Darcel,” Link cut in, his tone final. “He needs me more than my mother does.”

A hand of equal size to Link’s reached across Darcel’s chest. The fingers clasped around his, which were clasped around Darcel’s. Link looked up and met Zelda’s warm eyes, set into a kind face that was framed by hair the color of goldenrod. 

“Darcel will be okay,” Zelda assured Link. “I’ll stay by his side until you come back.”

Link couldn’t dream of going against Zelda, who was as close to him as a sister. With no further argument, he left the room with a promise to return.

Impa also took her leave for the moment. “I’ll be back shortly with a meal, since you left breakfast so abruptly, Princess Zelda.”

“Yes, thank you.” Zelda’s reply came out distracted. Her entire focus was on Darcel. She saw Impa’s departing bow out of the corner of her eye. 

Silence settled over the room. Zelda became acutely aware of the hard chair beneath her; the distant birdsong from the gardens outside the room’s window; the dull bustle of the castle help in the surrounding rooms and halls. She could hear Darcel’s faint breaths. She shifted closer to him, taking a seat on the bed itself, and brushed his gray-white hair from his paler forehead. Her fingers grazed his brow and twitched away when they felt the cool skin. At the light touch, Darcel’s brow furrowed, and his face tightened. A blood-red gaze peeked out from split eyelids. It fixed on Zelda and widened.

“Zelda!” Darcel sat up, his arms reaching as if to draw Zelda into an embrace. He made it halfway into a sitting position before his eyes fluttered, and he fell back against his bed. His chest moved in several deep breaths.

“Take it easy,” Zelda urged him. Her voice trembled. She was so used to Link’s and Darcel’s matching features. To see one now so much changed… The princess cleared her throat. “How do you feel?” Why was she whispering as if Darcel was on his deathbed?

Darcel’s eyes opened and roved the ceiling of the room. Zelda saw he recognized his surroundings, and a small calm fell over his body. “I’m not in the Lost Woods anymore.”

Zelda shook her head. When she spoke again, she was glad to hear her voice at its normal strength. “No, Link and Ganondorf went after you. They brought you here, and you were given medicine.”

Darcel made to sit up again. He took his time, and he was able to brace his back against the bed’s headboard. The pillows softened the press of the wood against his shoulders. He took another look around, taking in the clean room bathed in sunlight and smelling the familiar odors of the old castle. When his eyes found his reflection in a mirror across the room, his breath caught in his throat. He raised a shaking hand and ran his fingers through his faded hair, along the lower lids of his altered eyes, and down his cool cheek. “The curse…” Darcel bowed dropped his eyes to his lap. “I remember entering the woods. I was walking for a while before I rested. There were these roots… They tried to strangle me! I got scared, and I knew I had to find a way out, but I kept getting more and more tired… And more and more lost…” He lifted his head and marked the ceiling’s carved beams before he turned his eyes to Zelda once again. “Why do you look so afraid of me?”

“I… I’m not.” Zelda relaxed her face. She tensed again when Darcel leaned in closer to her. His red eyes drilled into Zelda’s blue ones with an intensity that was frightening. Zelda shrunk away, and Darcel snatched her wrist in a strong grip.

“I’m not a monster.”

“Darcel, let me go,” Zelda demanded in a voice that shook slightly. “You’re hurting me.”

“I’m not a monster!” Darcel repeated. He nearly yelled the words, and his hand tightened around Zelda’s wrist.

“All right, all right! You’re not a monster! Now let me _go!”_ Zelda yanked her wrist free and hugged it to her chest. She rubbed the red fingerprints away as she watched Darcel’s anger fade to a troubled look.

“I’m sorry,” Darcel said in a whisper. He raised a palm to his brow and stared into empty space with a terrified expression in his eyes. “I don’t know what came over me just then.”

Zelda opened her arms, and Darcel fell into the inviting embrace. He hugged her with care, and she said nothing about the tears that dampened her blouse. Darcel felt light in Zelda’s arms. It was almost as if he was a mere outline of a person. She hugged him a little tighter and was glad to feel he was still solid. “I’m glad you’re okay,” Zelda said. “Link was really worried too. He didn’t want to leave you.”

Darcel pulled away from Zelda. He rubbed a tear from his cheek and asked, “Where is he?”

“He went to tell your mom about what happened.”

Darcel’s eyes narrowed. Zelda saw something in them that bordered on danger. “Why does Link have to involve her?”

“Darcel, I’m sure she’s worried about you.”

_“No she’s not! If she isn’t laid up in some ditch stone drunk, then she’s laid up in some stranger’s bed! I’m the farthest thing from her thoughts!”_

Impa appeared in the room’s doorway with a tray of food held between her hands. She paused at the threshold to look between Darcel’s red face and Zelda’s slightly cowering frame. “What is all this shouting about?” the nurse demanded to know. Neither child answered her. Darcel fell back against his bed with a glare marring his face.

“Darcel, it’s good to see you’re awake and lively,” Impa continued. She carried the tray to Darcel’s bed and placed it on the mattress between the two children. Her sharp eyes marked the worry in Zelda’s face, but the princess smiled it away and thanked her nurse for the meal. Impa’s nostrils flared. Zelda was one of the few people who could hide her feelings from the Sheikah. “Enjoy your breakfast,” Impa said. She turned away and walked out of the room. “You know where to find me if you need anything, Princess Zelda.”

“Yes, thank you,” Zelda replied. She added a wave to her nurse’s back. The breakfast tray steamed its invitation. “Darcel, are you hungry? There’s plenty here.”

Darcel rolled over, putting his back to the tray and to Zelda. “No, I’m not.”

An hour of tense conversation passed between Zelda and Darcel. The princess nibbled at the food on the tray, all the while trying to urge responses from her friend through gentle questioning. Darcel was in no mood to talk. His answers were clipped, and he never spared a glance for Zelda. The princess could only silently pray for Darcel’s difficulties to go away in short time. 

Not long after Zelda gave up on eating and talking, a small commotion outside the room drew both her and Darcel’s attentions. Darcel sat up to narrow troubled eyes at the doorway. “That sounds like _her,”_ he hissed.

“Your mother?” Zelda managed before Raine stormed into the room with Link and Impa at her heels. The Hylian woman was arguing with the Sheikah nurse as she walked. A few seconds of heated argument told Darcel and Zelda that Raine was initially refused access to the castle before Link could vouch for her.

“My sons are here almost every day but their own mother isn’t allowed--”

Darcel blocked out his mother’s drunken rambling and looked to Link. The young Hylian hovered near the edge of the room with a glum look on his face. So it wasn’t his plan to bring Raine along. In fact, if the bruise on his cheek was telling enough, he had argued with Raine over it.

“And you, what have you gotten yourself into?”

A rough hand seized Darcel by his chin, and his head was turned up toward Raine at an awkward angle. He grimaced when a shot of pain sparked in his neck. Almost immediately, Raine forced his chin out of her hand.

“Who are you?” Raine asked. Darcel flexed his jaw and looked up at his mother with a poisonous glare. “You’re not my son,” Raine continued. “You look nothing like him. You’re a changeling. You’re not my son.”

Darcel’s eyes narrowed again. He took several deep breaths; his tense shoulders heaved with each one. “You’re right,” he said through teeth clenched against a tirade of screams. “I am not your son.”

Link stepped forward. “Mom?” he called. Raine whipped her head around to him. “You should lie down. You’re just in shock. Darcel is changed a little, but it’s still him. When you’ve had some rest, you’ll see that.”

Impa stepped in to back Link up. “Yes, Link’s right,” the nurse said, her voice calming. She placed a comforting arm around Raine’s bony shoulders and led her out of the room. “Come along. You’re more than welcome to stay in the castle until your son is feeling better. We have a room that will suit you fine.”

“He is not my son,” Raine said once more. She and Impa walked out of earshot, and the children were left alone. 

Link cast Darcel a troubled smile. “She didn’t mean--”

“Of course _she_ did,” Darcel cut in. His red eyes turned from the doorway and fixed on Link. “Don’t let it bother you, Link. Why did _she_ hit you?”

Link’s hand shot up to his bruised cheek. He dropped it just as quickly when he saw Zelda turn to him out of concern. “It’s nothing.”

“Poor Link,” Zelda remarked. She stood up to fuss over him. Link blushed under the attention as he--unsuccessfully--tried to deter the princess’s concern. “I’ll get you some ice,” Zelda volunteered. 

“No, Zelda, you don’t have to do that…” 

Link’s words fell on deaf ears; Zelda hurried out of the room. Link was left alone with his brother, who studied him with an unreadable expression. “I’m glad to see you’re awake already,” Link said. Darcel gave no reply. “Really, Darcel, what were you thinking?” Link asked next. “I hope you don’t try anything like this again.”

Darcel’s eyes narrowed at the chiding, paternal tone that Link had adopted. “You are not my father,” he said. His voice was even, but Link could hear anger beneath it--low, distant rumbles that promised a dangerous storm if provoked.

“I’m only looking out for you, Darcel,” Link soothed. “We’re brothers. We look out for each other, remember?”

“When I need looking after, I’ll ask for it.”

Link shook his head in disbelief. “What’s wrong with you?” he asked Darcel. “Ganondorf and I risked our lives to go after you in those woods--”

_“I never asked you to!”_ Darcel shouted. He dropped to his mattress and pulled the bed sheet over his head, leaving Link in a whirl of troubled emotions. Confusion was first and foremost, yet there was also concern and even anger. He was still trying to sift through them when Zelda returned with the promised ice, bundled in a rag. Link thanked her as he pressed it to his bruised cheek.

“No problem,” Zelda replied with a bright smile. Her eyes told Link she could feel the tension between him and the covered mound on the bed. 

Instead of worrying Zelda by confirming the mood, Link instead returned her smile. Yet he couldn’t ignore the feeling of paranoia when he turned his back to his brother.

#

Ganondorf emerged from the washroom with hands bright from rough soap. As he walked, he thought back on the last few hours. Captain Viscen was kind in his punishment, largely because the king himself had stepped in during Ganondorf’s debriefing. The captain had a lot to say about Ganondorf’s disobedience, as well as reports of the guard’s loose morals at the castle gate and in town. It was only when King Daphnes appeared in the captain’s quarters did Captain Viscen calm down. A month’s chamber pot duty was reduced to three days, and the king hinted at advancement if Ganondorf kept up the good work. The look on Captain Viscen’s face was priceless.

Now there was no shouting or berating. There was only the quietness of the castle halls in the evening, when the Royal Family was at their business and the help were at their meal. Ganondorf walked away from the washroom, glad to be free of the residue of his punishment for at least today. His heavy footfalls masked the approach of two sets of lighter feet. Yet Ganondorf sensed Impa and Zelda with a feeling he couldn’t put into words. He stepped to the side, allowing them by on their quicker feet with a bow of his head and a murmured word of deference. 

When Ganondorf raised his head, he found Impa still before him. Zelda was nowhere in sight, but a door across the hall was open, and from the room beyond it came hesitant piano notes. “Lady Impa,” Ganondorf greeted directly, bowing his head again.

Impa returned a nod. She was easy on her feet, but Ganondorf knew she was always aware even in the midst of sleep. “The princess will not say anything, so it falls to me to thank you for your role in rescuing Darcel.”

“I was only doing my duty as a servant to Hyrule, Lady Impa,” Ganondorf said. “And the boy means a lot to me. Both of them do. I think we’ve grown together in the last four years we’ve known each other. It would have been terrible to see one of them gone too early.”

In the music room the piano notes stopped, and the princess grumbled a few frustrated words.

“Is that so?” Impa appeared impressed, yet Ganondorf could see she was gauging his every word for deceit. It pained him. He meant what he said, even if the wording was flourished. 

“I only wish…” Ganondorf stopped. “Excuse me. It’s not right to say…”

“You started, now finish,” Impa encouraged. 

Ganondorf straightened his stance. In the music room, the piano notes picked up again. “I only wish Princess Zelda would be kind enough to relay her praise directly.” They were bold words, especially for the princess’s nurse. Ganondorf wished he could take them back as soon as they were gone. He wanted to find his place in Hyrule, not jar himself out of it. 

Impa folded her arms across her chest plate. She was always battle-ready. “The princess does not trust you.”

“Do you?” Ganondorf couldn’t resist asking. Just dig the hole deeper…

“No,” Impa replied. Ganondorf nodded, expecting as much. “However, I can recognize when praise is due. You did excellent work today, Ganondorf. Keep it up, and you might prove all of us wrong. You might even see your home again in a few years.”

“Hyrule is my home now,” Ganondorf said. Impa turned toward the piano music without a remark on the words. “Lady Impa?” Ganondorf called before the Sheikah could disappear into the open room. “Will you tell the princess something for me? Tell her that with a little more practice she’ll play as beautifully as her mother once did.”

Impa frowned but nodded. She took a few more steps, and the door closed off the piano music to Ganondorf’s ears. He relaxed for the first time since letting the ladies by, only to tense again when a new voice entered his ears.

“Hyrule is your home now? Have your loyalties shifted so?”

Ganondorf spun and backed away from the wall. Looking out through a portal against the stone was an aged face he knew well, decorated with a red jewel on the forehead. A second portal opened to the right of the first, and a similar face studied Ganondorf from beneath a blue jewel.

“Mothers,” Ganondorf said, almost gasping. Relief twisted into anger in short time. His fists clenched, and it was all he could do to keep from shouting at the top of his voice. “You promised to keep in touch! Yet here I am, more than ten years into the exile your actions forced me into, and only now you find me?”

“Hush, boy. Remember where you are,” Kotake said. Her large eyes narrowed in admonishment. “Do you think it’s been easy, staying low while suspicion and doubt filtered out of Hyrule? We put our faith in you, and trusted you would make a name for yourself in our absence.”

“And you have,” Koume picked up while Ganondorf fumed in silence. “You’re a favorite of the Royal Family. You saved the life of one of the princess’s dear friends. With a little more luck, you’ll be an ambassador in no time.”

“Ambassador?” Ganondorf shook his head. “I don’t understand. I want to come home! Hyrule has been good to me, but it’s nothing like the desert.” His hand rose to touch the charm hanging from his neck.

Koume turned to her left, seeming to look directly into Kotake’s portal. “He wants to come home, sister.”

“Then allow me, sister,” Kotake said. She waved a hand and a third, man-sized portal bloomed to life between the twin witches’ portals. 

Ganondorf peered into the portal. He saw sand as far as the eye could see. It was a dark brown in the dropping sun, and spotted with thirsty plants. Ganondorf reached a hand toward the portal and felt the dissipating desert heat against his dark skin. It almost brought tears to his eyes, and he rushed forward, staggering when his feet went from hard floor to yielding sand. The portal winked out behind Ganondorf, leaving him surrounded by his homeland for the first time in over ten years. After the initial shock--during which Ganondorf dropped to his knees to run his fingers through the gritty sand--the once Gerudo king was left with only one prevailing feeling.

Disappointment.

Koume and Kotake looked on in silence as Ganondorf spun in place, taking in the desolate landscape with its distant red cliffs and endless horizon. There was no grass save for brown shrubs, and the stunted trunks that reached for the desert sky here were far cousins from the vibrant trees that thrived in Hyrule. The initial heat that had soaked Ganondorf’s hair in sweat was now turning toward a cold that made him shiver. He hugged his chest and stomped his feet. A spider as large as Ganondorf’s hand zipped out of its disturbed burrow and sped away. “Why haven’t you brought me to the fortress?” Ganondorf asked his mothers.

Koume and Kotake shared a laugh. “Are you insane, boy?” Koume asked her son.

“Have you forgotten who sits on the Gerudo throne?” Kotake shook her head. “Nabooru is in the Hyrulean king’s confidence. She was the one who negotiated the finer terms of the treaty, ensuring her people thrive through trade and fair sanctions with Hyrule. Both her and Daphnes regard you with suspicion at best.”

“Take one step into the fortress grounds,” Koume picked up, “and you can be sure you’ll lose your head. You are exiled from Gerudo lands and you’re a pariah in Hyrule. You have no place, boy, as much as you might hope otherwise.”

“And whose fault is that?” Ganondorf spat at the witches. He strode toward them, and they kicked up into the air on brooms that appeared in their hands. They remained tauntingly out of reach while Ganondorf’s voice rose higher with each word. “I never wanted to make war! It was all your idea! You fed me these lies about how Hyrule once belonged to the Gerudo and could be again. You pushed me to kill Hyrulean ambassadors until King Daphnes was incited to declare war. You encouraged us to fight despite our disadvantages, our limited supplies, and the disloyalty that you knew-- _you knew_ \--would lead to Nabooru’s defection, and ultimately our loss. So tell me again how all of this was a good idea! Tell me again how it fits into whatever stupid plan the two of you have concocted! I don’t see how any of it has benefitted the Gerudo or me!”

“Ganondorf,” Koume said in a weary voice, “what have you been doing all this time in that castle?”

Ganondorf calmed his breathing and relaxed his tense body. It was a difficult process that took almost a minute. “I… My duty,” he said when he was sure he wouldn’t shout the words.

“You’ve been doing more than that,” Kotake said. “You’ve proven yourself dependable and loyal.”

Ganondorf shook his head when Princess Zelda’s face rose in his mind. “There are still many who distrust me.”

“The king is growing to trust you, and that’s all that matters,” Koume said. “And this latest thing…” She looked to her sister.

“The princess’s friend,” Kotake continued. “You saved his life. The king knows of this.”

“He vouched for you,” Koume reminded her son.

“In a few more years you’ll be trusted with better roles,” Kotake said. “You’ll become an ambassador--a link between the Gerudo and Hyrule. That will put you close to the king…”

“And then the king will die,” Koume finished.

Ganondorf frowned and shook his head. “I don’t understand--”

“Are you content with living out your days as an underappreciated guard?” Kotake asked.

“Underappreciated? You just said--”

“Do you think you’ll ever get anywhere letting grieving mothers into the castle on the sly?” Koume pressed.

“How did--”

“They see you as more nuisance than help, Ganondorf.”

“That’s not--”

“You’re a joke. A laughingstock.”

“I don’t--”

“’Look at the Gerudo who thinks he’s a Hylian!’ they say.”

“Stop it--”

“’He’ll never be one of us,’ they tell each other.”

_“Stop_ it, or I’ll--”

“’The only thing he’s good for is losing’, they laugh.”

_“That’s enough!”_

Twin plumes of black fire shot up from the sand beneath the witches. They dodged to the side on their brooms and drew together again when the flames dissipated into sparks. A disappointed sneer passed between them, and Koume remarked, “His power is greatly underdeveloped.”

“We expected you to go off a lot sooner than that,” Kotake said to Ganondorf.

Ganondorf stood with his arms at stiff angles to his sides. His breaths left him in heavy clouds against the cooling desert air. The sun was gone. Only a lingering glow gave light to the area. It shined off of two circles of fresh glass in the sand below the witches, giving the impression that a set of red eyes was staring at Ganondorf. 

Koume and Kotake descended to the ground and stood by their son. Koume’s hand warmed Ganondorf when it touched his arm, and Kotake rubbed the anger out of his shoulders. “You don’t belong here anymore,” Koume said.

“And you don’t fit in Hyrule,” Kotake added.

“However, should you take matters into your own hands…”

“…you would not only belong, you would sit as _king.”_

“War again.” Ganondorf was reminded of Asra, pale and speckled with red drops; of bodies strewn across sand sticky with blood; of horses dying with human-like screams.

“No,” Koume said, shaking her head. “It will be much cleaner than that. There will be no time for Hyrule to retaliate.”

Ganondorf laughed hollowly. “I can’t keep a kingdom for long without a force by my side.”

“Oh, you’ll have _a force_ all right.” Kotake said, smiling. “The Tri--”

“Kotake, a scout!”

Ganondorf followed his mother’s pointing finger to see a woman on horseback against the horizon. She was fleeing the scene, trailing a plume of dust. It would be impossible to catch her on foot.

Kotake rose onto her broom once more and gave chase after the scout; Koume followed her, riding her slipstream. Ganondorf was left to make his way on foot. He watched his mothers launch balls of magic at the scout. The horse soon plowed headfirst into the sand and kicked up a brown cloud. Ganondorf broke into a jog that carried him to the downed scout.

It was a Gerudo, of course. She glared at Ganondorf from beneath her dead horse. The beast’s legs were bleeding stumps, broken by ice, and its head was a scorched mess of bone and hide. Severe burns covered the Gerudo’s exposed arms and face. Her legs were pinned under the horse’s weight. 

“You monster!” The Gerudo spat at Ganondorf. The spittle landed on the horse’s body.

Koume reached down and picked up a scimitar that had fallen nearby. “Your magic is insufficient for the moment,” she said. The scimitar was pushed into Ganondorf’s hand. “This will do.”

“Use _your_ magic,” Ganondorf said.

Both of the witches shook their heads, and Kotake said, “If you want Hyrule instead of isolation or further exile, you will prove to us you still have the power to take what you deserve.”

“The cold will take her.”

“Not before someone comes looking for her. Do it, Ganondorf.” Koume’s words were final.

“You monster!” the Gerudo screamed again when Ganondorf raised the scimitar and pointed it downward. “You’ll pay for this! Nabooru will see to it!”

Nabooru’s name goaded Ganondorf. The scimitar’s blade dropped, and the scout’s final curse died on a shocked breath. Ganondorf leaned on the blade’s hilt and closed his eyes. His murmured prayer to Serhanaka, the desert goddess, was cut off when Koume pulled him up.

“Your enemies will spare no prayers for you.” Koume snapped her fingers, and the corpses erupted into flames. Ganondorf backed away from the stench of burning hair and flesh. He felt a portal open at his back and smelled the closed air of Hyrule Castle. 

“We’ll be in touch,” Kotake said, smiling. “You’ll be learning quite a bit from us, dear Ganondorf. A king must be strong if he’s to rule.”

The heat of the fire pushed Ganondorf back into the portal. He lingered on the threshold for a second or two before he turned in place and made to step into Hyrule Castle. He stopped at Koume’s shout and turned to the desert again.

“The boy,” Koume said. She waved her hand in a searching gesture. “The changed one…”

“Darcel?” Ganondorf supplied.

“Yes. Keep him around. Let him learn from you. He has potential.”

Ganondorf gave no reply, and he returned to the castle with his stomach roiling from unease. The portal vanished, leaving behind a solid wall once more that Ganondorf leaned against. He allowed the castle’s closeness to warm his skin while he fought against the urge to heave from the stench of charred flesh that lingered in his nose. He gulped a few times, ran a hand through his hair, and wiped a smear of blood from his arm. He managed one step from the wall before the reality of what he had done came rushing over him. In fifteen minutes he had undone ten years of nonintrusive existence.

Ganondorf pressed a hand against the wall and crouched. It was tempting to fall down at the wall’s base and lay there until someone came by and bullied him back to his duties. Ganondorf felt he would do anything to avoid more violence and war. He would even scrape every chamber pot in Hyrule clean with his bare hands.

_Are you decided then?_ spoke Koume’s voice on Ganondorf’s left. The Gerudo whipped his head up and around, yet the witch wasn’t in sight.

_You’re content to live out your days like an obedient dog? Taking orders from the very men who treated your loyal soldiers shamefully?_ That was Kotake, on Ganondorf’s right. Yet there was only the wall; not even a portal gave a source to the words in Ganondorf’s ears.

_Where do your loyalties truly lay, Ganondorf?_

_With those who tried to help you? Or with those who stopped you, and continue to hinder you?_

Ganondorf got to his feet. He was in a different hall from where he had gone into the portal. It was a quiet hall, chosen for its lack of traffic. Just how much were Koume and Kotake watching him over the years? Were they still watching him now? 

_Let them,_ Ganondorf decided. He had something he needed to do.

#

The guest room was quiet. Both boys had gone to sleep early, exhausted from their long morning. Darcel lay in his bed with a thin sheet twisted around his legs. Link was curled up in a chair on the opposite side of the room. Ganondorf found an extra blanket and pillow in the closet to make him more comfortable. The boy barely stirred when Ganondorf tucked his limbs and head into better positions.

Darcel subconsciously kicked at Ganondorf’s hands when the Gerudo tried to untangle the sheet. Ganondorf let it go and moved up to the boy’s head. It took a while, shaking Darcel’s shoulders and hissing his name over and over, before Ganondorf was able to stir him into some manner of wakefulness. They boy’s bleary, newly-changed eyes looked up at Ganondorf with half-recognition. “…Dad?” Darcel blinked, and his eyes widened. A dark blush colored his pale face, and he twisted his shoulders out of Ganondorf’s hands. 

Ganondorf took hold of Darcel’s shoulders again. “Darcel, listen to me.”

“Let me go, Gan, I want to sleep.”

_“Listen to me,_ I said,” Ganondorf growled. 

Darcel glared at him around a yawn, but waited. 

Ganondorf hesitated. He had two options. Which one was better for Darcel? The Gerudo cast his yellow eyes around the room. He took in the fine furniture and crafted details, all of it borrowed by the low-born Hylian for the time being. He dropped his gaze to the side of Darcel’s bed where Link was earlier in the day. His fingers felt the young Hylian’s bones exposed by poor diet and poorer living conditions.

Darcel’s head drooped on his neck. Ganondorf shook him awake again, and Darcel whined a little before blundering through his short vocabulary of curses. “Darcel.” Ganondorf met the Hylian’s eyes and kept them focused. “You stick by me, you hear? No matter what happens, I’ll do my best to protect you. Stick by me, learn from me, and you’ll be okay. Do you understand?”

“Yeah, yeah…” Another yawn. “What about Link? Will you protect him too?”

Ganondorf shook his head. “No need. They’re not after Link.”

“What’s that… supposed to mean…” Darcel was slipping back into sleep again. Ganondorf let him go. His hands guided Darcel back to the mattress. This time, the legs didn’t kick when Ganondorf untangled the sheet and dropped it over Darcel, shrouding most of his body in white.


	4. Choices

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some years have passed, and Link and his brother are almost strangers to one another, and a simple kiss is enough to light more than one fire.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you're all enjoying ItSoaH! Feedback is always appreciated.
> 
> Please enjoy, thank you!

# In the Shade of a Hero

### Choices

The placid, gleaming surface of Lake Hylia shined under the sun. Gentle, blues waves lapped at the shore, inches from Link’s feet, casting reflections of light across his face. The lake hadn’t changed much in the past seven years, although Link’s visits to it had. For the most part, he didn’t have his brother Darcel at his side anymore. Link would have given anything to change this, yet despite his efforts over the years it remained the same fact that Darcel wanted less and less to do with him. 

A witness in Hyrule Field had put Darcel on the road to the lake. Link backed away from an eager wave of water and scanned the lake area once more. His blue eyes followed the line of the bridge to a small island; and from there along another bridge to a second, larger island at the lake’s heart. A dead tree stood upon the latter island, and within the crook of its remaining branch was a dark shape bordered by blue sky.

Link jogged to the second island. The bridges grumbled beneath him and bucked their indignation until he reached the firmer ground of the island. He looked up as he walked to the tree. Darcel’s right leg hung down, and his hands were busy with something. Fish bones were scattered around the base of the tree directly beneath him. Link called up to him, but the busy hands didn’t still.

“Darcel!” Link called again, with more force this time. Perhaps the distance had eaten his first call. Link was rewarded with an impatient, red-eyed look. “I’ve been looking for you all morning! I should have known you’d be here.” Link approached the tree trunk to climb it. The bark was smooth, however, and Link backed up a few steps. “How’d you get up there?”

The red eyes rolled. A fish’s rib nearly struck Link in the head. Another one disappeared into Darcel’s mouth. He pulled it out almost immediately, his teeth scraping it clean of pink flesh. 

“Are you eating those raw?” Link asked. He drew a face at the unappetizing idea and laughed a little. “You keep hanging out here and eating raw fish, pretty soon you’ll be a Zor--”

“What do you want?”

Link abandoned his unfinished sentence with a sigh. The smile that appeared on his face next was still hopeful. “Zelda has invited us to the castle today. She says she has something for each of us for our birthday. You know, in a year we’ll be eighteen, and then we can be a part of the coming of age ceremony. That’ll be neat, huh? No more being treated like a kid--” Link was forced to stop and back away when a small rain of fish bones fell. Darcel followed them, landing with knees bent to help take the force of the drop. Link saw Ganondorf’s training in the move, and his heart dropped a little.

The fish bones snapped under Darcel’s boots when he landed. He straightened up and wiped a silver scale from the corner of his mouth before the lips fixed into a scowl. “Zelda invited _us?_ Or did she tell only you to come, and you’re just being nice by extending the invite to me?”

“What?” Link shook his head. “No, Darcel. She’s invited both of us. She always does. I don’t know why you would think any different.”

“Why doesn’t she ask me herself then?” Darcel pressed. “It’s always you who tells me she wants us to stop by. I don’t see her coming out to find me and ask me.”

Link rolled his eyes. It took some effort to keep from laughing at Darcel. “She’s the princess of Hyrule, Darcel. It took me two hours to find you today. Do you think Zelda has that time?”

“No,” Darcel said. He sidestepped Link and walked toward the first bridge. “But she has plenty of time for you, right?”

“What? Darcel, wait--”

“I’ll be at the castle,” Darcel called back. “I want to see Gan anyway.”

“He’s busy today, Darcel!” Link had to shout, as his brother was moving fast across the restless bridges. “Some sort of ambassador thing!” Darcel ignored him; didn’t even spare a glance. Link dropped his cupped hands from his mouth. The sun overhead was warm, and it sparkled atop the lake’s surface. A low breeze played across Link’s cheek. The bright scent of the grass underfoot filled every breath. Link barely registered it all. He instead watched Darcel’s striding legs, hunched shoulders, and crossed arms, and tried to find the brother he once knew. It was a common practice of his, and one that was growing harder by the day.

#

“Happy birthday, Link!”

Link started back a step in surprise. One moment the castle grounds in front of him were empty, and the next a princess had leapt out from behind a tree. Link had to laugh when Zelda shoved a wrapped gift into his hands. After his tense run-in with Darcel that morning, her enthusiasm and spirit was refreshing. He accepted the gift from her and leaned his back against the tree. His hands worked over the small package in an absentminded way.

“Have you seen Darcel yet?” Link asked. Zelda pushed back a misbehaving lock of hair and shook her head. “He was acting weird again today.”

“In what way?” Zelda moved to the tree and put her back to its trunk as well. Her shoulder pressed against Link’s, and even through two layers of clothes he could feel her warmth. He became acutely aware of her breaths, her hair ticking his neck, and the small shifts of her body as she adjusted her leaning position.

Link gave a mental shake of his thoughts. “He was just saying weird stuff,” he muttered. 

“He was caught stealing in the market square again yesterday,” Zelda revealed. Link whipped his head around to her. The princess’s lips were pressed into a thin line. “I can’t keep vouching for him, Link. It’ll create unrest amongst the people if they see someone getting special treatment despite his crimes. And the soldiers will see me as weak or unfit to lead.”

Link turned forward again and bowed his head. “I know.” His fingers toyed with the knotted string around his gift.

“You need to talk to him.”

Link raised his head. “I try all the time!” The words snapped out, and he rushed an apology. 

Zelda waved it off. “He’s spending a lot of time with Ganondorf,” she remarked. The words came out light, but Link picked up something beneath them.

“Gan’s a good guy,” Link insisted. “Darcel likes learning from him. It keeps him focused and out of trouble if he’s here instead of in town.”

“I watch them sometimes,” Zelda said. “It’s hard to tell them apart at times.” Link shifted in place beside her. “Anyway…” Zelda nudged him with her elbow. “Open it up. I have one for Darcel too, if I can find him. Hey, how was your birthday yesterday? Do anything special?”

It wouldn’t be kind to worry Zelda with the truth. Link and Darcel had spent the entirety of their birthday in a cloud of apprehension as their drunken mother raged through the rooms on the other side of their locked bedroom door. Links smiled and shrugged a shoulder in answer. He avoided Zelda’s scrutinizing eyes.

The knot came undone easily, and when the brown paper was torn in half Link found a simple necklace under the wrappings. It was a tightly braided rope of leather with a tapered sapphire hanging from the middle. The gemstone caught the sun when Link held it up, and blue light sparkled over his and Zelda’s faces.

“Let me tie it on for you,” Zelda offered. 

Link pocketed the wrapping, handed the necklace to Zelda, and bowed his head forward. When he felt the princess’s thin fingers brush the back of his neck, a shiver went through him.

“Done!” Zelda announced. 

Link straightened up with the sapphire now hanging against his chest. He noticed Zelda’s hands were lingering on either side of his neck. He offered her a questioning look.

Zelda’s teeth worried at her bottom lip. “Um… I have another gift for you.”

“Oh? You didn’t have to--” Link’s words were cut off by Zelda’s lips.

Darcel, hidden in the tree’s eaves above, felt his blood run cold, and his heart stutter to a stop. The latter picked up double-time when hot anger replaced the cold shock. His fingers tightened around the branches he was holding until the knuckles turned white, and a livid grimace revealed clenched teeth. In silence, he dropped from his hidden perch and strode away toward the guard barracks across the castle grounds. The distracted teenagers behind him never took notice.

The various knights and common soldiers knew Darcel’s face--and his reputation--well enough to not accost him when he entered the barracks uninvited. The teenager marked each face with his red gaze, searching for the brown-green skinned Gerudo amongst them. A nameless soldier whom Darcel didn’t know jerked a thumb toward an open doorway. Darcel followed the direction to a room. Ganondorf stood within it before a full length mirror. He was wearing a new uniform that Darcel had never seen on him before.

Ganondorf’s yellow eyes caught Darcel’s reflection in the mirror. “What is it, Darcel?” the Gerudo asked. “I don’t have time to practice with you right now. I’m receiving my official title as a foreign envoy from the king.”

“’Foreign envoy’?” Darcel repeated, raising his grey-white eyebrows. 

Ganondorf smiled a little at Darcel through the mirror. “I’m going to be the official ambassador between visitors to the kingdom and King Daphnes.” The smile dropped, and he returned to adjusting his uniform. “No more quiet gate-keeping for me, I guess.”

“Congratulations,” Darcel said with a roll of his eyes. He crossed his arms and leaned against the wall by the door.

Ganondorf tried to force his high, stiff collar into a comfortable position. “What’s wrong with you, kid? You look even more pissed off than usual.”

“Do I?” Darcel asked, attempting and failing to sound nonchalant. “It’s nothing,” he continued when Ganondorf’s questioning gaze didn’t waver. “The world is over. That’s all. The one bright spot in my life I thought I could obtain was crushed out before my eyes moments ago.”

Ganondorf frowned. If he had a guess on Darcel’s odd words, he didn’t venture it aloud. Instead, he indicated with a nod of his chin a thin package resting against the wall to his right. “It was your birthday yesterday, wasn’t it? You might still have a year before you’re a man, but I think you deserve that anyway for all of your hard work in your lessons with me.”

Darcel straightened up with renewed light in his eyes and walked to the package. He stripped the paper away from a black scabbard inlaid with silver loops and swirls. The sword that the scabbard housed was just as beautiful. Darcel took hold of the black hilt and unsheathed the sword partially to admire the cold gleam of the blade.

“Wow,” was all the Hylian could say at first. He had never before held a true blade. All of the ones he had so far used in practice with Ganondorf were either wooden or specially crafted with dull edges.

Ganondorf had finished his preening; now he ruffled Darcel’s grey-white hair. “I’ll get you started on some serious training now. I’m going to teach you almost everything I know--which is a whole lot more than what the king would have you learn if you were strictly in his service. We’re going to accomplish a lot together, Darcel.”

Darcel was already securing the scabbard on his back. At Ganondorf’s words, he paused in his concentration on the buckle to cast the Gerudo a confused look. “What do you mean by that?”

Ganondorf looked to the room’s door. It was void of any eavesdroppers. He crouched down so that he was a little below Darcel’s line of sight. The Hylian in response leaned in. “Listen.” Ganondorf spoke low. “I want you to be prepared. Things might start to change around here. I’m an ambassador now. I have influence on the king. I’m close to him, in short.”

“I don’t understand…” Darcel trailed off when Ganondorf raised a finger for continued silence.

“Darcel, soon there’s going to be a time where you’ll be forced to choose sides.” Ganondorf’s words had a hollow note to them. Darcel wondered why his friend and mentor had such a sad look on his face. “And the side you choose might not be the same side your loved ones choose. But sacrifices have to be made for the better good. You know that right? To obtain happiness and stability, sometimes other things are lost. Do you understand what I’m trying to say?”

“A… A little.” Darcel said, his brow furrowed. This wasn’t like Ganondorf, to talk so cryptically. And the words almost sounded rehearsed. Darcel had a strange feeling that someone was whispering into Ganondorf’s ear. He scanned the room, quickly. There was no one else but him and Ganondorf. He shook the thought away and tried to focus on the strength that the sword against his back gave him.

Ganondorf nodded once in satisfaction and stood up. “My job as ambassador will bring me into contact with many different people from around the world. You might see one or two of them come to the castle. If you do, treat any newcomer with respect. They might be a friend to me, and you don’t want any friend of mine as your enemy, Darcel.”

“Am I your friend?” Darcel asked. The words were out before he knew it.

Ganondorf smiled and ruffled Darcel’s hair again. This return to the usual easiness about the Gerudo relaxed Darcel. “Kid, you’re like a son to me. Stick close, and you’ll have nothing to worry about, okay?” Darcel nodded. “And keep quiet about anything strange you might see or hear.”

A trickle of unease worked down Darcel’s spine when he heard the warning. He shrugged it off and bid Ganondorf a goodbye, thanking him for the gift.

Ganondorf waited until Darcel’s footsteps had faded away before he turned back to the mirror. “You were saying?”

Koume’s and Kotake’s faces peered back at him, slightly warped by the mirror’s surface. “He’s coming along nicely,” Koume remarked. 

Ganondorf glared at his mothers’ images. “I told you that Darcel stays out of this.”

“He’s already in it,” Kotake said. “The moment he came out of those woods in your company, he’s been nourished by your dark light. He’ll be a fine warrior for our cause.”

Ganondorf shook his head a little. “I don’t have a dark light.”

“Well it’s certainly not a very bright one, is it?” Koume returned, to her sister’s delight. “You’re destined to take back Hyrule for us and the Gerudo, Ganondorf. You don’t do that with love and caring.”

“The Gerudo don’t want me as their leader,” Ganondorf reminded his mothers. It was an old routine by now, but he felt the need to go through the steps each time. He kept hoping it would be different.

Koume and Kotake had no patience for the same song and dance this time. “Like we said before we were interrupted, you’ll be getting help,” Kotake said. “As well as you’ve advanced, and as nicely as the dark Hylian is growing up, you still can’t initiate a coup alone.”

“We have someone coming,” Koume picked up. “It’s been difficult getting a hold of him, and we had to promise him his share in the bloodshed--”

“What bloodshed?” Ganondorf asked. He was ignored.

“But he’ll help,” Koume finished. “He’ll be arriving in a few months’ time. Keep sucking up to that fat king until then. It’ll make our mutual friend’s induction into the castle that much easier.”

“Someone is coming,” Kotake warned. Ganondorf’s ears picked up the footsteps of an approaching guard. He waved a hand at the mirror, and his mothers’ visages disappeared. A helmeted face peeked around the doorway a second later. 

“Ganondorf, the king is ready to receive you.”

Ganondorf nodded, adjusted his stiff clothes, and followed the guard out of the barracks. 

#

After a few seconds that were a blissful eternity, Link felt Zelda’s lips pull away. He opened his eyes to find her wearing the same pleasant surprise on her face as he felt in every fiber of his being. 

“Wow,” Zelda remarked. A blush touched her cheeks. “Um… I’m sorry if that was… I’ve never really…”

“Me neither,” Link admitted. His cheeks felt warm. He released a breath. Was he holding it all that time? “But it was nice. Really nice.” Link wished he had some other words to express how _really nice_ the kiss was, but his brain had momentarily fallen silent on him. 

“Really nice,” Zelda echoed. She had a small smile on her face.

“Yeah.”

“Yeah…”

They stood in silence for another few awkward seconds before Zelda started as if she was shocked. “Well, um… I should go look for Darcel. I still have his present to give to him. Are you going to be staying long?”

“I could stay long,” Link said, nodding. “If you want me to.”

“I do.” Zelda’s blush deepened. “Well I’ll, um, find you when I’m done so just… You know your way around, right?” Link nodded again, and Zelda, looking flustered, parted from him with a shy wave and a shyer goodbye.

Link slid down the tree’s trunk and took a seat at its base where the shade shielded him from the overhead sun. Even so, he felt warm all over. A smile played at the corner of his lips every so often, and his fingers worked at the rough edges of the grass blades by his thigh. 

Link was still in a good mood when Darcel walked by some time later, as always looking like he had somewhere better to be. Link called out to him, and Darcel stopped dead. The look he shot Link was hard to read, and he didn’t move closer. Link was forced to gain his feet and walk to his brother. He noted the black and silver scabbard on Darcel’s back, and remarked on its beauty.

“It’s mine,” Darcel said, somewhat testily. His expression remained unreadable, but unquestionably dark.

“A gift?” Link guessed. Hoped. Darcel didn’t reply. “Well, Zelda is looking for you. You missed her by only a few minutes, actually. She headed off that way.” Link indicated the direction with a raised hand. Darcel didn’t turn his head to follow, and Link frowned. “Okay…”

“What does she mean to you?” Darcel asked.

Link felt his face grow warm when Darcel’s question brought to mind the kiss. He forced nonchalance into his words. “Zelda? Well, you know… She’s like a sister to us. We grew up with her. She means a lot to both of us.”

“Do you swap spit with your sister, Link?”

Link stilled. His nonchalance fell away, replaced by choked words. “Did you… Were you _spying_ on us?”

Darcel turned his eyes away from Link’s shocked face. His red gaze looked out over the castle grounds and the not-so-distant rooftops of the town that broke the horizon. “Soon there’s going to be a time where you’ll be forced to choose sides. And the side you choose might not be the same side your loved ones choose. But sacrifices have to be made for the better good. You know that right? To obtain happiness and stability, sometimes other things are lost. Do you understand what I’m trying to say?”

Link shook his head. “No. I don’t.”

“Of course you don’t.” Darcel laughed a little. “But you will soon.”

Link took an uneasy step back. What was all this talk about choosing sides? About sacrifices and change? It didn’t make any kind of sense. “Listen, I’m going to find Zelda and tell her you’re waiting for her. Stay here, all right?”

Darcel made no promises, but he didn’t walk away either. Link hurried off to find Zelda. He located her not far off, as she was making her way back to the front grounds. Link pulled her behind a garden wall before she could walk into Darcel’s sight. Zelda looked about to protest when Link said, “Darcel is just over there.”

“Oh, good!” Zelda said. Her indignation brightened to happiness. “I’ll give him his gift.”

“No, wait!” Link grabbed Zelda’s hand before she could hurry away. “He’s acting strange. Stranger than earlier. I think… I think he saw our kiss.”

“Oh.” A slight, thoughtful frown worked over Zelda’s face.

“Just be careful around him, okay?” Link begged. “I’ll keep an eye out from here, but just stay alert. We both know how he can get nowadays.” He sighed and bowed his head. “I should have tried harder to stop him from going into the Lost Woods when we were kids.”

Zelda lifted Link’s chin with a gentle hand. “That wasn’t your fault,” she said when their eyes met. “If anyone’s to blame, it’s Ganondorf for putting the idea into Darcel’s head. So stop blaming yourself.” Zelda leaned in and caught Link’s mouth in a second kiss. It was shorter than the first, but just as nice--perhaps more so--and it left Link feeling better when they parted. “I’ll be right back,” Zelda promised.

Apprehension tensed Zelda’s body as she approached her waiting friend. But her smile was genuine when she and Darcel met eyes. “Happy birthday,” she wished, and she held out a package identical to the one she had given Link.

After a lengthy pause--during which Zelda waited for a denial--Darcel accepted the gift from her and unwrapped it. As he did, Zelda marked the sheathed sword on his back with a troubled eye. The blade filled her with further unease.

Darcel held up his gift: a necklace similar to his brother’s, only with a ruby instead of a sapphire. Zelda smiled when the gemstone caught the light. “It’s neat, right? I made it myself, although I had a jeweler cut and polish the gemstone for me.” Darcel didn’t offer any remark. “Can I tie it on for you?” Zelda asked him.

Darcel bowed his head forward, and Zelda tied the gift around his neck. “I gave one to Link too,” Zelda said once she was finished. “His is blue.”

Darcel finally spoke. “What does he have that I don’t?”

Zelda frowned. “I’m sorry?”

Darcel raised his unreadable red eyes to Zelda. “We’re twins. Why did you pick him?”

“I don’t under--”

“Is it because he’s _normal?”_

“Darcel, don’t be ridi--”

“Is it because he doesn’t _scare you?”_

“You don’t scare me, Darcel,” Zelda managed before Darcel could override her again. “You’re my friend, just like Link is my friend.”

Darcel smiled without humor. “Is that right?” he asked. Zelda nodded. “Really?” Darcel pressed. 

_“Yes,”_ Zelda insisted.

“Well then…” Darcel shifted closer to her. “Kiss me like you kissed your _friend_ Link.” 

Zelda only stared at him. Impatient, Darcel leaned forward. A sharp slap across his face stopped him. The hand left a hot brand on his cool cheek. Darcel straightened up and wiped some spittle from his lip that had escaped under the force of Zelda’s blow. A short, humorless laugh shook his shoulders. “I see,” he said in an emotionless voice.

Zelda took a step back. In the corner of her eye, she noticed Link step out from behind the garden wall. A small gesture by her hip kept him from running forward to her aid. “Darcel, I’m sorry,” Zelda said, her voice even. “I really do care for you--just not in the same way you’d like me to.”

Darcel sent a dark look toward his distant brother. “Yeah, I get that now.” His words left behind a bitter sting in Zelda’s heart when he walked away.

#

“So she said no. Who cares, Darcel? There are plenty others out there.”

Darcel sighed and bowed his head at Ganondorf’s words. “Not like her,” he said to his lap. “She’s the princess and--”

“Exactly,” Ganondorf cut in. He put aside the piece of armor he was polishing and picked up another. The ambassador ceremony yesterday was a load of sensory information--perfumed witnesses, stifling air, oiled armor, and stiff clothes--and the return to busy work was a calming antidote. When Darcel turned a confused look to Ganondorf, the Gerudo elaborated, “Princess Zelda is the heir to the throne. Therefore, she won’t ever be allowed to marry someone as low-born as Link--no offense, kid.”

“None taken,” Darcel replied in a distracted voice. “I can’t be offended by someone I don’t associate with.” He plucked at the knees of his pants. “You know what, Gan? You’re right. I shouldn’t worry about it.” Darcel felt himself growing lighter than he had felt since Zelda’s rebuttal the day before. He stood up from his chair in the corner of the armory and stretched his limbs. His sword came free of its scabbard with a faint _shick_ of metal. “So what am I learning today?”

Ganondorf saw the sword catch the sunlight from the window, and he held up a hurried hand for pause. “Hold up.” He indicated Darcel should sheath the blade. The Hylian did so with obvious reluctance. “Before you can master a blade, you must first master yourself. That includes mastering inner strengths like sorcery.”

“Sorcery?” Darcel’s eyes brightened. “I can learn magic like you?”

Ganondorf beckoned Darcel closer until he was able to place a palm against the teenager’s chest. “Inside every Hylian is a strong bloodline dating back to the age of the Goddesses. There’s a magical potential in everyone born to that bloodline. It’s how you bring that potential out that separates you from common people.”

Darcel liked the sound of that. He didn’t want to be common. He wanted to be _uncommon._ “I want to learn sorcery,” he said. “But… you’re not Hylian. So how can _you_ wield sorcery?”

Ganondorf grinned and dropped his hand from Darcel’s chest. He raised it flat next, and a ball of black fire bloomed to life above his dark palm. “I learned my craft from a darker source.”

“Darker?” Darcel raised his fingers to the flames. They brushed their warm tongues across his skin when he dared to run a hand through them. 

Ganondorf dispelled the fire and noted the interest in Darcel’s voice with a heavy heart. But if the boy was to survive… “Never mind that for now,” Ganondorf said. Darcel’s shoulders slumped. “I’ll teach you a basic spell to start things off: Din’s Fire. Oh, but… Do you have time to learn it today?”

Darcel frowned. “What do you mean?”

Ganondorf nodded toward the armory window. The sunlight streaming in was dim and almost orange in color. Dust motes flashed lazily in the light. “Your mother wants you home by this time, right?”

Darcel’s countenance darkened. “I don’t care what _she_ thinks. Besides, Link is allowed to stay out as long as he wants, and he never gets in trouble. Why should I be different?”

“But isn’t being different exactly what you want?” Ganondorf asked. Darcel nodded, and Ganondorf laughed. “All right. If you’re so eager to break rules!” They shared a mischievous grin.

_Things would be easier if his mother wasn’t around,_ Koume whispered in Ganondorf’s left ear.

_The castle would take him in, and he could spend all his spare time learning from you,_ Kotake added to the right ear.

“Yeah, it would be nice,” Darcel agreed. 

Ganondorf snapped his eyes around to the Hylian. “What?”

Darcel looked up from scuffing a foot in the dirt. “It would be nice to live in the castle, like you said.”

Ganondorf looked around. He and Darcel were outside the armory, in a small circle of hardpan reserved for training the castle guard. When did they…?

“Wishful thinking, right?” Ganondorf said, shaking himself out of whatever stupor he had fallen into.

Darcel nodded in agreement and dug a shallow hollow into the hardpan with the toe of his boot. “Sometimes I wish _she_ was dead,” he murmured. His shoulders hunched, and he dug his boot deeper. 

Ganondorf tapped one of the Hylian’s tense shoulders. “Let’s get to work on Din’s Fire,” he suggested, putting his momentary lapse out of mind.

#

Link picked up a toppled vase and returned it to its place on a side table. The flowers within it were dying; they left pieces of themselves behind on the floor. He made a mental note to pick more in Hyrule Field tomorrow as he swept up the mess with his hands and threw it away. He continued down the short hall, picking up Darcel’s spare pair of secondhand boots and tucking them against the wall; flattening out the hills of the threadbare carpet; and picking up a few remnants of wax seals and corks. These latter joined the flower petals in the trash before Link returned to the hall and followed it to the sitting room.

“Mom?” Link stepped into the room. There was trash here to avoid as well, but he knew better than to clean it up while Raine was still awake. “Mom?” Link repeated. His mother lifted her head to him from her seat in the room’s good chair, one of the few remaining remnants of a once-better life. “Hey, some of the guys invited me out tonight. You know, just to toss a ball around or something. Do you need anything before I go?”

Raine lifted a bottle to her lips and drank. Link took that as a no, and he turned around to leave the room. At the doorway, he stopped and looked back. He didn’t want to linger. The carpet was sticky beneath his feet, the room’s air was musty, and the sharp stink of alcohol assaulted his nose. But it was all a part of the only home he knew. He did his best to relax even as his head screamed at him to get out to fresher, friendlier air. 

“I love you,” Link said in parting. He was smart enough not to wait for a reply. He turned back into the hall.

“Link.”

“Yeah?” Link returned to the doorway, nearly tripping over his feet. He had to grab the wall for brief support. 

Raine knocked back another swallow. “Tell that changeling not to come home.”

It was Link’s turn not to reply. He turned back to the hall and left his home, his heart heavy. 

#

Darcel walked into the market square under a sky that was nearly dark. Every step hurt, as his entire body was aching from his training with Ganondorf. After Darcel had managed a small flame through the use of Din’s Fire, Ganondorf had turned their attentions to swordplay, perhaps because he had noticed his apprentice’s eagerness to break in the birthday gift.

The weight of the new sword was something Darcel had never encountered before. Ganondorf had assured him that with more training he would be able to wield it almost effortlessly. Darcel was looking forward to that day, as was his aching body. Yet even now he felt good. Link had never bothered with swordplay, so for once Darcel was better than his perfect brother at something.

_“Look out!”_

Deep in his thoughts, Darcel failed to notice the person running toward him. A body connected with him, and he fell to the ground along with it. Stone scraped Darcel’s arm, and he felt an elbow find a rib. The fall wasn’t kind on his sore body either; the muscles protested over the rough treatment. On top of all this, blonde hair tickled Darcel’s nose. Darcel shoved the other person off with an angry grunt and snapped, “Watch where you’re going!”

“I’m sorry, Darcel,” said a familiar voice. Darcel stiffened when he recognized his brother’s tone.

Link got to his feet first and offered his twin a hand. Darcel ignored it and pushed himself up on his own. Link sighed and collected the ball he was running to catch. It was made of tough hide, and stitched into an oblong shape for easier play. His three friends ran up to him and gathered around as Darcel brushed dirt from his pants. “Are you all right?” Link asked him.

“Fine,” Darcel replied, the word curt.

“Are you sure? You’re on your way home, right? I could walk you--”

“I’m not ten anymore!” Darcel shouted. Link’s friends took a few wary steps back. “I don’t need you to hold my damn hand!”

“All right,” Link said in a soft voice that begged for calm. “All right. Relax. I was only offering. It’s dark, you know?”

“Yeah, I noticed that,” Darcel snapped.

“I’m sorry,” Link said. “Listen, tell Mom I’ll be home in a few minutes, okay? And be careful--she was in a weird mood when I left.”

“Like I care.” Darcel turned and walked away. He didn’t miss the snickers of laughter behind his back.

“Link, your brother is so _weird.”_

“Hey, shut up, okay? He’s my brother.”

“What a freak.”

“Guys, enough…”

Darcel swore he could hear laughter in Link’s voice even as he pleaded for his friends to stem their remarks. The dour Hylian disappeared into the dark entrance of the low district to make his way to a place he no longer considered to be home. Home was not a dilapidated hole in the wall. Home was not a place that stank of alcohol and soiled floors. Home was… Home was…

Darcel didn’t know the answer to that question. He knew home was a place where one felt loved, but he hadn’t experienced anything like that in a long time. Link’s brotherly concern was simply a show out of obligation. And Rained surely didn’t offer any love. She barely had concern for herself to spare. Ganondorf’s friendship was the closest thing Darcel had to a “home”, and the Gerudo was stationed at the castle. 

_Things would be easier if your mother wasn’t around._ Darcel could still see Ganondorf’s flat, yellow eyes turning to look at him. 

Darcel hugged his arms tight against the cool night air and tried to ignore the sound of a baby crying deep in the low district. He kept hoping his footsteps would drown out the sound, but it persisted until he closed the house door on it. 

Raine was slumped against her liquor shelf with a bottle in hand. Darcel sneered when he walked into the sitting room and saw her. She was dressed in a filmy dress stained with spots of stinking booze. The sight of her spiked anger in Darcel and he couldn’t help but remark, “Getting a late start on the night’s festivities, are you? You’re usually passed out drunk by sundown.”

Raine fixed bleary eyes on Darcel and returned his sneer at half-strength. “Where’ve… been?” she slurred.

“Why do you care?” Darcel snapped back. “I’m not your son, remember? You remind me of that fact every day.”

Raine’s eyes narrowed. _“Changeling,”_ she hissed.

“Exactly,” Darcel said. _“So watch out,”_ he added in a low, menacing whisper.

Raine’s eyes widened with paranoia, and she straightened on her feet. “You stay away from me!” she nearly shrieked. “You foul, twisted little hell spawn! They should have drowned you when you were a babe--”

“I think it’s time you went away now--for good,” Darcel said, more to himself. He knew now why he had returned home so early when usually he stayed out later than Link. The thought was at the back of his mind since Ganondorf’s remarks, but now it came forward, fully developed as an idea. “Things will be a lot easier without you around.”

At these words, Raine staggered toward her son with her skeletal hands reaching for his neck. An outraged scream tore at her throat. She collided weakly with Darcel, and he immediately pushed her foul body away, casting his newly-learned spell as he did. He was new to the magic; only small licks of flame flickered from his fingertips. Yet they were enough to catch on his mother’s dress where they began to feed on the thin, liquor-stained fabric. Raine was fully in flame by the time she staggered backward into her liquor shelf. Bottles shattered, the fire spread across the spilled alcohol, and soon flames were engulfing the room.

Darcel watched for as long as he could. Heat buffeted at him, pushing his pale hair back and giving warmth and color to his skin. His red eyes watched his panicked mother, covered in flames, stumble around the room until she collapsed and was overtaken by the raging fire. 

The thick air drew a cough from Darcel. He turned around to hurry out of the house. His eyes were blurred by tears and his lungs were burning when he emerged, but he could see a large crowd was already gathering in the alley. Neighbors were fleeing their homes, for the greedy flames were spreading across the poorly maintained houses. Panicked screams rent the air. The sky above the low district was highlighted by an orange glow. Darcel half-collapsed against a stone wall to collect his breath. 

Soldiers from the castle appeared to help funnel the civilians out of the alley. Others arrived with equipment to quell the fire. Bucket brigades were set up, and a carriage with a hand-pumped water tank and hose took up station. In the midst of the chaos, Darcel heard his name being called. He followed the sound further down the alley until he ran into Link. 

“Darcel!” Link rushed up to his brother and studied the ash-covered clothes with wide eyes. “Were you in that fire? Are you all right?” He lifted his head to search the immediate area. “Where’s Mom? Did she get out?”

A shadow fell over the two teenagers, blocking out the fire that was casting a dancing light over the alley. Link and Darcel looked up to see Ganondorf. He had arrived with the other soldiers. “How are you two?” Ganondorf asked the teenagers. Link murmured an okay. Darcel coughed a few times, but waved off the concern. “What happened?” the Gerudo asked, his eyes on Darcel.

“An accident,” Darcel replied. It was strange how distant his words felt from the rest of his body. He shivered despite the heat of the flames and brushed some ash from his arms. “She’s dead, Link,” he added. There was no emphasized malice in the word anymore. “She was drinking. A… candle tipped over and caught light on her dress. I couldn’t help her, and then the flames started to spread. I had to get out, or I would have been dead too.”

Ganondorf raised his eyebrows at the slight pause in Darcel’s account, but decided not to press it when Darcel stared back at him with hard eyes. 

Link noticed nothing suspicious in his brother’s words. He dropped so suddenly that Ganondorf barely had time to grab his arm. The Gerudo eased Link the rest of the way to the ground where the Hylian folded his legs and hid his face in his hands. “If I’d gone home with you…” he said, speaking to Darcel. “If I hadn’t stayed out later… I would have… I could have…”

There were no words Darcel could say that wouldn’t sound false. He left the comforting to Ganondorf and turned his head to watch the flames consume the last vestiges of his miserable life.

#

“This is been an unfortunate for the two of you. I’m so sorry for your loss.”

It was late after the fire; close to midnight. The flames had spread enough to take out most of the low district before it had finally succumbed to the soldiers’ efforts. Smoke still rose from the ruins, but from the castle the grey column could barely be seen.

Link and Darcel were brought to a receiving chamber by Ganondorf at King Daphnes’s request. They now sat before the king on a shared couch. With them was Zelda, who sat to Link’s right. She was rubbing her hand across his trembling back. Ganondorf was on the stoical Darcel’s left. 

At Daphnes’s words, a short sob escaped Link, and he bowed his body forward over his knees to hide his grief. Zelda fell to soothing him into calm; stroking his hair and pressing a kiss to his temple. 

Darcel barely suppressed a sneer at the sight.

“Link. Darcel,” Daphnes continued, somberly, “I would not be lying by saying the two of you have been like dear brothers to my daughter ever since her own mother died. So I will say here and now that you will never want again. The castle is taking you in. You have always been considered practically members of this family, but now it’s official.” The king sighed and managed a faint, reassuring smile that Darcel did not return, and Link failed to see in his distress. “I will take care of the funeral arrangements not only for your mother, but for the others lost in tonight’s terrible fire. I will also be implementing the creation of better homes and laws to help those that are in less-than-desirable conditions.”

“Sacrifices have to be made for the better good,” Darcel spoke up. “To obtain happiness and stability, sometimes other things are lost.” He felt a hard jab in his ribs, and he cast an annoyed look at Ganondorf. The Gerudo gave one quick, barely-there shake of his head.

Daphnes blinked in surprise at the odd words. “Well, yes. It’s unfortunate that a sacrifice had to come first. But your mother’s death will not be in vain, Darcel. It will stand for something much more than a wasted life. It means the beginning of change.”

Link raised his head and fixed his bloodshot eyes onto Daphnes. “Thank you,” he said in a hoarse voice. “For everything… Thank you.”

The king nodded and motioned to Impa, who stepped out of the shadows of the room. “We’ll place the two of you in a guest room for tonight. Tomorrow, we’ll get you set up properly. Impa, please escort them to the room we have prepared.”

An hour later--both of them bathed and dressed in borrowed nightclothes--Link and Darcel lay in adjoining beds, facing each other. Link was still shedding the occasional tear, but he spared a few clear moments to say what he felt was most important at the time. “I don’t blame you, Darcel. You couldn’t help her, so you fled. I understand that, and I’m glad you made it out alive. She… Well, I guess it was sort of inevitable.”

Darcel offered no comment.

“Well… Goodnight,” Link said with a faint smile. His twin brother nodded once and turned over. Link snuffed the lit candle that sat on the table between his and Darcel’s bed and turned over as well. He tried not to think of fires, or burning candles toppling over, or--

_Wait._

Link sat up. A cold feeling crept over his skin, moving from head to feet in a second. What had Darcel said? A candle had tipped over, starting the fire?

_We didn’t have candles in the house,_ Link remembered with unease. _Because she was always getting drunk… It was for that exact reason. To prevent an accident like tonight. We only had oil lamps…_

Link studied his brother’s back. After a minute in silent thought, he lay back down and curled up beneath his blankets. He did not sleep with his back to Darcel that night.


	5. New Arrival

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Link and Darcel are set into their life at the castle, but they're not the only ones who come to live beside the most powerful seat in all of Hyrule.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for your support of this story!
> 
> There are a few cameos in this story from other _Zelda_ games outside of _Ocarina of Time,_ and this chapter introduces one of them. 
> 
> Please enjoy, thank you!

# In the Shade of a Hero

### New Arrival

“Come on, Darcel, keep your guard up! Do you want to lose your head?”

The clangs of connecting swords echoed up the hill and to Link’s ears with sharp clarity. His ear tips twitched, and he wrapped his arms tighter around his folded legs. Blue eyes marked the training ground that was laid at the base of the slope. Darcel and Ganondorf were deep into their latest swordplay lesson. Every near-miss made Link wince. He couldn’t shake the image of Darcel missing a block and ending up with one less body part. 

Not that Ganondorf was truly trying to best his charge. Link had no experience in swordplay, yet he could tell the Gerudo was holding back. This should have comforted the Hylian, but it only made him feel more uneasy. What was the purpose of training Darcel so rigorously? He had never expressed any interest in becoming a part of the castle guard.

_Maybe Darcel’s changed his mind,_ Link thought, and he dropped his chin to his folded knees. _So much of him has changed over the past few years._

_Listen, tell Mom I’ll be home in a few minutes, okay?_

_An accident… She’s dead, Link._

_If I’d gone home with you…_

_Sacrifices have to be made for the better good. To obtain happiness and stability, sometimes other things are lost._

“Hey.”

A hand touched Link’s shoulder. He lifted his head, gasping, and jerked his eyes up. It took a second or two for him to recognize the blue eyes looking down at him. For one delirious moment, he thought Darcel was back to normal.

“Are you okay?” Zelda dropped to her knees in the cool grass beside Link and put an arm over his shoulders. She was startled to find them trembling. “Link--”

“Fine,” Link rushed out. He ran a hand over his face; it was slick with sweat. “I’m fine. Thanks.” He laughed a little hollowly. “I’m just thinking too hard again.”

“You’ve been doing a lot of that these last two months,” Zelda teased him. “Maybe you’d be happier living out at Lon Lon Ranch like a horse instead of here in the castle, hmmm?”

Link smiled. “Malon _is_ pretty cute. And she’s not tied up with royal duties all the time.”

Zelda smacked Link over the head with a light hand, only to laugh the next second. 

Darcel’s ears picked up the sound and twitched. A brief glimpse up the hill earned him a missed block, and he was on the ground before he could blink. Dirt puffed up around him and tainted his shocked breath. He was too used to that particular taste of defeat.

“Fool,” Ganondorf snapped over Darcel’s groan of pain. “Allow no distractions.”

“Sorry,” Darcel said, his voice bitter. He regained his feet and raised his shield.

Ganondorf took a ready stance, but at the sound of a blare of trumpets he relaxed. “Ah, that must be him.”

Darcel relaxed too. His shoulders gave a small twang of protest as the muscles--stiff from an hour’s training--were forced out of their tense positions. “What’s going on?” Darcel asked.

Ganondorf’s eyes were fixed on the distant front gate of the castle grounds. An entourage of mounted soldiers was gathered there. “Remember what I told you about any visitors of mine that might come to the castle?”

Darcel nodded, recalling the conversation--and the additional warning.

“Good.” Ganondorf looked to Darcel, grinned, and lifted his sword. The hilt found its target on Darcel’s head. The Hylian went down with another cry. “Never put your guard down before an opponent,” Ganondorf reminded him.

Darcel pounded the ground with a fist. “We weren’t fighting!” he pointed out.

“But I hadn’t sheathed my blade,” Ganondorf returned before doing exactly that and walking away.

At the top of the hill, Zelda’s attention was on the gate as well. “Who could that be?” she wondered, standing up. Her teeth worried at her bottom lip. Link got to his feet as well and wrapped an arm around her waist. The princess relaxed against his side. “I’m going down to see,” Zelda decided.

Link pulled Zelda back with a firmer grip around her waist. “You forget who you are,” he said, laughing when she protested. “It would be unseemly for the princess of Hyrule to go down and meet visitors like a common guard. You must wait for a formal introduction. You know how these things go.”

Zelda huffed, stomped a foot, and crossed her arms. “When I’m queen, things will be a lot less formal.” Her eyes marked Ganondorf’s dwindling form as it moved toward the gate. “Look at him, thinking he’s important just because of a title. That man isn’t fit to be an ambassador. Not after what he did.”

“Zelda…” Link rubbed her arm. “He’s not that bad. He made some mistakes, but now he’s redeeming himself.”

“You believe that, do you?” 

“You don’t?”

Zelda shook her head. She stopped when she saw the dismay in Link’s face. “I’m sorry, Link. I know what he means to you. It’s just… He troubles me. I had a dream not too long ago. In it--”

Another blare of trumpets cut Zelda off. Ganondorf had arrived to the gate, and now the visitors were marching down the road to the castle. 

“No time for that,” Link said. He turned Zelda away and guided her along a worn path to the castle. “You have to prepare yourself. No doubt your father will call you to the throne room to formally welcome these guests, and your dress is covered in dirt.”

“So?” Zelda countered, hotly. Link shook his head and laughed, but knew better than to reply.

Not far off, Darcel swung himself up a tree’s trunk and perched amongst its eaves. From there, he could watch the visitor and the mounted entourage sweep up the road to the castle. There were half a dozen people in full concealing armor atop six brown horses, with a seventh person--a man, and quite young--on a white mount in the midst of them. This man appeared strange, even for such a diverse land as Hyrule. He had long, pointed ears like a Hylian, but they stuck out further from the head. His complexion was pale as milk, and it was offset by long, straight hair the color of lilac. His clothes echoed the color in various shades of purple, complete with a floppy, conical hat. A large red jewel adorned this latter, set into the hat’s wrought gold band.

Darcel leaned further out on a branch as the entourage passed almost directly under his hiding place. The long hair was concealing half of the newcomer’s face, but Darcel could see the eyes were as red as his own. _Who is this guy?_ Darcel wondered, shivering.

The train of horses continued up the road with Ganondorf striding beside the white mount. He noticed his guest turn his head to study a tree falling behind. “Something wrong, Vaati?” the Gerudo asked.

The strange man named Vaati turned his head forward after a few seconds’ worth of watching the tree’s branches. Ganondorf couldn’t get over how young the pale face looked. Link and Darcel had to be at least two years older, although the three of them more or less shared the same height. And yet, Vaati commanded the air of an aged general with numerous victories under his belt. “It’s nothing,” Vaati replied. “Nothing at all. Did those witches tell you the plan?”

“Yes, but only recently,” Ganondorf said. He glanced around at the entourage.

“Don’t worry about them,” Vaati said, offhandedly. 

Ganondorf nodded. “So you’re under my orders then?” he asked. Vaati stiffened, and the one red eye that was visible narrowed. “I mean… We’re partners. We’re to help each other.”

“Mmmm.” Vaati dug between his teeth with a long fingernail. 

“I’ll just be glad when all this waiting is over,” Ganondorf said, dropping his head. “For years it’s been ‘you’ll be king this’ and ‘you’ll rule Hyrule that’. I mean, you haven’t been dealing with nagging parents for as long as me but--”

“Shut up,” Vaati cut in, sharply. Ganondorf looked up from his feet to find Vaati’s face was hard. “I know I look young, but I assure you I have _centuries_ on your pathetic blink of a life. Do not speak to me like I’m a child. Do not assume what you see is all there is.” Vaati leaned down to put his words close to Ganondorf’s ear. “Or I promise you, you’ll spend a long time regretting it.”

“Right,” Ganondorf muttered. He put some distance between himself and the white horse. 

Vaati straightened up and settled back into his saddle. A quick shake of his head cleared most of the hair away from his face, and a brilliant smile touched his lips. “This is going to be fun.”

#

Zelda took one look at the young man--a child, almost--who introduced himself as Vaati, and she knew in her heart and mind that he couldn’t be trusted. Yet she was required to keep her opinions to herself while her father Daphnes received the new arrival in the throne room. Ganondorf acted as a mediator of sorts. He introduced the parties to one another and vouched for Vaati, labeling him as a dear friend.

_All the more reason to distrust him,_ thought Zelda, who had never grown to like Ganondorf. She felt the Gerudo’s heart was stained by ill intent. But with no physical evidence to back the claim, she could say nothing against him publicly. _However, once I’m queen…_ Zelda stopped and chided herself for thinking so longingly on something that would come about at her father’s death.

The throne room was hot. Zelda fought the urge to fan herself and silently prayed this would be a short affair. To her left, Daphnes straightened in his chair and extended a welcome to Vaati. “Tell me what brings you to my kingdom, Vaati,” the king added at the end of the pleasantries. 

Vaati bowed low before replying; his long hair nearly touched the floor with the act. “My lord, I am a Wind Mage, and with my talents I am able to read the airs and study them much like an astronomer studies the night sky. And like those skilled men and women may be able to read the future in the stars, I can sense things on the wind.” Vaati fixed unwavering eyes on Daphnes. “I fear trouble is coming to Hyrule. I have come here to both warn you of this and to offer my services in both preventing and rising to meet that trouble.”

“Trouble?” Daphnes’s tone was one of clear worry. “What sort of trouble? And what service can you offer to my kingdom?”

“I am a sorcerer, my lord,” Vaati replied. “And if I may be so bold, a powerful one. For example, the entourage that accompanied me to the castle today was a fabrication of my magic. You will not find the horses in the stables, or the men in the castle.” While Daphnes digested this show of skill, Vaati folded his hands together and continued, “I am not looking for any payment in return for my services. My only concern is keeping this beautiful kingdom of Hyrule in its current condition--a condition that will only blacken and sour should war come to its lands.”

Daphnes shifted. “So this trouble… It will be war?” The king’s white eyebrows drew close together

“My lord, I know not what it is exactly,” Vaati said with a second, smaller bow in apology. “But I do know a crippling fate awaits you and your kingdom if you ignore my warning.”

Zelda could see her father was troubled by the news, but she herself was doubtful of the Wind Mage’s words. To her knowledge, there was no kingdom that wanted to make war with Hyrule. The last war had ended over a decade ago, and the people were once more content. A civil war was always possible--an echo of the ancient wars of legend--but it would need to be something deeply divisive to upset the peaceful races of Hyrule.

However, unlikely as Vaati’s warning sounded, it was clear he believed his own words. Zelda could sense he was neither lying about his abilities nor about his belief that trouble was on its way to Hyrule. _I’ll have to keep an eye on this young man,_ the princess decided. Her dream was at the forefront of her mind. She hadn’t yet told Link about it. She would have to find him as soon as possible and tell him so that he, too, could keep an eye out. As a less prominent member of the castle residency, he might be able to watch Vaati and Ganondorf with less risk of raising suspicion.

Daphnes was dismissing Vaati and Ganondorf. “I will think on your offer,” the king said to the newcomer. “Until then, you are a guest of this castle. I will call upon you again when I’ve come to a decision about a more permanent residency…”

Zelda tuned out the polite customs, chiming in only when it was her turn before sinking back into her thoughts. She was still lost in her musings when her father cleared his throat. Zelda started, cast her blue eyes around the throne room to find only the guards remained, and turned to Daphnes with a self-conscious smile.

“There is something on your mind, my dear,” Daphnes guessed.

Zelda sighed. She could hide very little from her father. “I’m worried,” she admitted. “Father, I had a dream the other night. In it, there were dark clouds covering Hyrule Castle, and the kingdom was burning.”

Daphnes’s eyes darkened. “Do you think it has any connection to what the Wind Mage is warning us of?”

“I do,” Zelda said, nodding. “But it’s not what you’re thinking. I believe Vaati and Ganondorf themselves are the black clouds. I think they want to harm Hyrule.”

“Nonsense!”Daphnes exclaimed, so suddenly that even a few of the guards at the room’s borders jumped. “Ganondorf has proven his loyalty time and time again for more than a decade--”

“His loyalties lie with the Gerudo as well,” Zelda reminded her father.

“Who are happy with their ex-king’s exile, and who are in no position to go to war with Hyrule again,” Daphnes tacked on. “They have limited resources, and they are no match for our superior numbers. Not to mention that Nabooru herself is loyal to Hyrule. We are in the midst of our most lucrative relationship with the Gerudo in centuries--for both sides.”

“But Ganondorf was once their leader, and if he can convince--”

“Enough, Zelda,” Daphnes said, quietly. Zelda fell into a troubled silence. “You worry too much, my dear,” the king continued. He reached for Zelda’s hand, and she stepped forward to place it in her father’s warm palm. He covered her thinner hand with his other and squeezed gently in a reassuring gesture. “If your mother could see you, she would have a few things to say about all the wrinkles you’re building in your face.” Zelda had to laugh a little at that. “I know a thing or two about running a kingdom,” Daphnes assured his daughter. “I can learn and have learned from my mistakes. War will not come to Hyrule again while I sit on this throne. We have the Goddesses and the Triforce on our side, so please don’t trouble yourself with these dark thoughts. Go. Go outside and enjoy the rest of the day. When I see you again, I want to see you glowing.”

Zelda attempted a glowing smile at those words, but it was a halfhearted effort. “All right,” she said, and she pressed a kiss to her father’s cheek before walking away.

#

Word was quick to get around the castle about the strange Wind Mage. By the time everyone had heard of him, more news of his acceptance as an advisor to the king began to make the rounds. Cooks chatted about the man over the murmur of simmering soups, maids in the midst of dusting passed remarks from behind rags tied over their noses and mouths, and pages took bets on the young man’s age--though there was no one brave enough amongst them to verify the truth.

Sine Vaati’s arrival to the castle a week ago, Darcel had not run across the Wind Mage a second time. Ganondorf was equally absent. It irked Darcel to be ignored for so long. He was sure if he could only find Vaati, he would also find Ganondorf. After several days of fruitless searching, Darcel put aside his aversion to people and asked around about Vaati. Through the vague recollections of the castle help who had seen the Wind Mage here and there, Darcel determined the best place to look was the castle library.

The library’s countless shelves commanded a large, round room in the castle’s east wing. Sunlight fed through a curved skylight to dance off of dust motes and gleaming wooden furniture. The air was thick with the smells of musty pages and leather covers. Any sound louder than a whisper was an insult to the care put into every shelved book and tucked-in chair. 

No scholars milled about the place today, mending book spines and cataloging piles of volumes. Instead, two men were standing over a large table that was covered in maps and documents. Darcel slipped into the library and approached them on quiet feet, using all of the skills he had learned over the years. Only when he was a foot away did one of the men lift his head.

“Snuck in, did you?” Ganondorf smiled warmly. “Just like a real Gerudo thief.”

Vaati looked up as well, clearly less enthused about Darcel’s unannounced arrival. With a flick of his wrist, he called up a wind that swept the papers out of sight to the other side of the room. 

Ganondorf chuckled at the reaction. “Relax, Vaati,” the Gerudo begged. “Darcel’s an all right kid. He’s on our side.”

Vaati’s lip curled. “He’s not even a man.”

“I’m seventeen,” Darcel growled. Though Vaati’s words were technically true, they stung Darcel. After all, despite his height the Wind Mage appeared younger than him.

Vaati rolled his red eyes and repeated, “Not. A. Man.”

Ganondorf laughed and strode around the table. His large hand clamped down on one of Darcel’s stiff shoulders. “We can trust Darcel,” Ganondorf said to Vaati. 

The Wind Mage shrugged and called back the papers with another movement of his hand. He spared Darcel a look of contempt, and the Hylian’s hands clenched.

“I suppose you’re missing your lessons?” Ganondorf asked Darcel. The Hylian relaxed his fists and nodded. “Well sorry about that, kid,” Ganondorf said, wincing. “I’ve been busy--we both have.” He indicated Vaati with a vague gesture. “We’re making plans.”

“Plans?” Darcel frowned. “What plans?”

“Plans to make Hyrule better for people like you and me, who are unhappy with being seen as second-rate,” Ganondorf elaborated.

“Don’t fill the child’s head with things that are best kept secret,” Vaati warned, speaking to a map.

Darcel bristled. “I am _not_ a _child!”_

“Children shouldn’t speak unless spoken to.”

Darcel shrugged off Ganondorf’s hand and stormed around the end of the table. “That’s it, you sorry excuse for a mage,” he hissed as he neared Vaati. “I’m going to rip that pretty hair out of your head.”

Vaati was quicker than Darcel’s fists; he raised a delicate hand. 

Darcel staggered to his knees when the air in his lungs was ripped out of him. He attempted to cry out, but he couldn’t take in a breath to do so. His mouth agape like a fish, he fell forward onto his palms as the empty sensation in his lungs tightened to an unbearable pain. He saw water drop to the floor, and he realized his tears were falling to express the torment he couldn’t voice.

“Enough, Vaati,” Ganondorf said.

Darcel looked up and saw the fingers of Vaati’s outstretched hand curl inward. Impossibly, the pain in his chest worsened. He bit his lip against it and tasted blood in his mouth. His body cramped, and he dropped to his side.

“I said _enough!”_

The majority of the pain vanished. Darcel took a rasping breath that escaped as a half-scream. His lungs ached a little less with each subsequent breath. Distantly, he could hear Ganondorf and Vaati exchanging a few tense words. Seconds later, a rough hand took hold of Darcel’s upper arm. He let it lift him onto his feet where he blinked dark spots from his vision. 

“I warned you,” Ganondorf said. His words shook a little. “I warned you about making enemies of my friends.”

“Listen to Ganondorf, child,” Vaati said. He had a smug look on his face. “You may be his favorite and the witches’ trump card, but my appreciation isn’t so easily won.”

“The witches…?” Darcel’s question ended in several coughs.

“Enough,” Ganondorf said a third time, looking directly at Vaati. The Wind Mage shrugged and returned to the maps. Ganondorf joined him. 

Darcel managed a hard glare at Vaati’s downturned head. He didn’t press any more hostility. He was a quick learner. “So these plans,” Darcel said, lightly, when he had caught enough breath to speak. “What do they involve? Can I help?”

Ganondorf shared a look with Vaati. The Wind Mage expressed his displeasure at such an idea with a long roll of his eyes. Ganondorf looked up at Darcel and smiled thinly. “Of course you can help, kid. But you should know what’s at stake. These plans…” Ganondorf frowned. “They’re not for the king’s best health.”

“What do you mean?” Darcel looked between Ganondorf and Vaati. They shared a scheming air that Darcel noted with growing comprehension. “Wait a minute. Are you… Are you suggesting… a coup?”

Vaati sighed and tilted his head to the side. His hair fell over his face with the smoothness of silk. “I knew this was a bad idea. You should have never said anything, Ganondorf.”

“He’s fine, Vaati,” Ganondorf said, winking at Darcel.

“No he’s not. He’s just a child.” Vaati straightened his head. “We’ll have to kill him now.”

_“No!”_ Darcel shouted. 

The word rang around the library. Ganondorf and Vaati looked to him with twin expressions of surprise. In Vaati’s case, the look dropped to one of boredom shortly after. 

Darcel waited a few seconds, half-expecting the books themselves to chide him for his shout. “I can be of help,” he continued in a softer voice. “I won’t tell anyone what you’re planning. Please, let me help you. I’ll train to fight for you. I’ll steal for you. I’ll spy for you--whatever you want! Please. I’m tired of this kingdom. It took away my father, it ruined my… my mother, and my brother is so wrapped up in it that he no longer cares about me.” Darcel set his face into a hard expression and concluded, “I’m tired of being second-rate. If Hyrule is to fall, I want to be one of the ones who push it into its descent.”

Vaati’s eyebrows lifted a little at that. Darcel thought perhaps he had earned a tiny bit of the Wind Mage’s _appreciation._

Ganondorf nodded once in grim approval. “All right, Darcel. You’re in.”

“Thanks.” Darcel relaxed visibly only to tense when a thought struck him. “Wait.”

“I knew it,” Vaati grumbled.

“No, wait,” Darcel said again. “I have a condition.”

The Wind Mage broke into delighted laughter. “A _condition?”_ he sneered, the laughter cutting out. “As if you’re in any place to negotiate terms. We’ll do this with or without you.”

Ganondorf ignored Vaati and encouraged Darcel with a short nod. “Go on, Darcel.”

Darcel took a deep breath. “Zelda. If you’re going to overthrow the kingdom, I want her to be safe. I want her unharmed. I want…” His hands twisted together. “I mean…”

Vaati’s demeanor changed in an instant. A genuine smile came to his face, and he purred, “Oh, a _girl._ Of course you would want to protect her, right?” The Wind Mage swept around the table to place an arm over Darcel’s shoulders. The Hylian marked him with a wary side glance. “But I bet,” Vaati continued, and his face dropped into a pout, “she doesn’t return your affection in a way you’d like.”

“No, she doesn’t,” Darcel confirmed in a cold voice. His entwined fingers bit into the spaces between his knuckles. “She prefers my _normal_ twin brother.”

Vaati clicked his tongue in sympathy. His pale fingers brushed aside Darcel’s grey-white bangs. “Poor child,” he lamented. “I’m sure we can arrange the safety of your lovely princess. However, we will require a hundred percent of your loyalty in return.”

Darcel nodded. “No problem.”

“Are you sure?” Vaati pressed. He dropped his arm and stepped back to stand before Darcel with both hands on the Hylian’s shoulders. “When I say a hundred percent, I mean a hundred percent. You will do anything we ask? Even if the order is to kill your own brother?”

“Vaati--” Ganondorf was cut off by Vaati’s raised hand.

Darcel’s brow furrowed. “Why would I kill Link?” 

“He’s close to Zelda, isn’t he?” Vaati pressed, returning his hand. “He’ll try to protect her. He’ll try to keep her away from harm--away from the side he perceives to be the bad one. In short, he’ll keep her away from _you.”_

Vaati felt Darcel’s shoulders stiffen. “I won’t allow that,” the Hylian vowed.

“Good answer,” Vaati said. He pinched Darcel’s cheek and returned to the table. Darcel rubbed at the sore spot. “In return, we’ll let you in on our secrets and plans. And I’m sure Ganondorf will be more than happy to return to his duties of training you in darker magic and swordplay.” The Wind Mage smiled. “You’ll be better than your brother could ever hope to be, Darcel.”

“I’d like that,” Darcel said, smiling as well. In his cheerfulness, he failed to notice the glare that passed between Ganondorf and Vaati. “So, when do you plan to put all this into motion?”

Ganondorf raised his head. “Not for a while,” he answered in an irritated voice. “A little less than a year, at the coming-of-age ceremony when Hyrule recognizes the eighteen year olds as men. Everyone of importance will be gathered there--the Royal Family, the royal guard, and every able-bodied young man who might stand against us if given the chance.”

“Not to mention all those innocent townspeople,” Vaati said, his red eyes hungry.

Ganondorf continued as if Vaati never spoke. “We’ll ambush the ceremony and kill whomever necessary to gain the throne.”

It was a grim picture. Darcel felt a twinge of uncertainty when the gruesome details bloomed in his imagination. He smacked his lips and tasted lingering blood from his earlier torment.

_child_

_freak_

_sorry_

_i have another gift for_

_not in the same way_

“Okay,” Darcel agreed. He walked forward to join the planning.


	6. The Fallen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> At eighteen years of age, Link and Darcel are finally old enough to be marked as men in Hyrule. But a cloud of danger hangs over the days leading up to the ceremony, and before it can start, things already end.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for continuing to read!
> 
> There's a bit of violence in this chapter, along with references to immoral actions.
> 
> Please enjoy, thank you.

# In the Shade of a Hero

### The Fallen

Eighteen years couldn’t have come fast enough for Link. Finally, he and his brother were old enough to be recognized at the coming-of-age ceremony. One by one they and other qualifying men would have their ears pierced before nearly the entire population of Castle Town. It was a long-held tradition, and to bear the pain of both piercings without flinching was something each young man strived for; to prove his bravery and resolve. Many of them had dreams of becoming a soldier in the castle guard--and with luck, perhaps a knight--and they considered the piercing to be the first of many tests along such a road. 

Link had no desire to be a man of battle. He would be happier with a simpler life--though he still didn’t quite know what that simple life was going to involve. Lately, he was considering going into ranching. The stable hands at the castle were always telling him he had a deep connection with the horses and other livestock. Link could calm a raging bull in a third of the time it took two men combined to accomplish the deed; his ways of breaking a horse were subtle but effective; and he had an unnatural charm over the cuccos, who were producing more eggs now that he had taken over caring for them. Link was teased for this latter--earning the playful nickname ‘Mother Hen’--but it was all in good fun, and the steady work kept his mind off of troubling thoughts.

When he wasn’t working, Link spent his time with Zelda. Yet in the past near-year, not all of their meetings were personal in purpose. Zelda was convinced Ganondorf and the strange Wind Mage Vaati were up to something. She was attempting to find out what that something was without the subjects of her investigation growing suspicious of her.

Enter Link, who did much of the tailing when Zelda required it. He had found out that Ganondorf and Vaati spent most of their time in the library when their respective duties didn’t occupy them. While this was odd behavior, the thing that unsettled Link the most was the fact that his brother often sat in with the two older men. Link had noticed this a month into his and Zelda’s investigation, and over time Link watched Darcel slowly change into someone almost unrecognizable. Darcel grew more distant; he focused intensely on his training with Ganondorf; and the looks he cast at Zelda during mealtimes were strange and hard to read. 

“I don’t like the way he stares at you,” Link said one evening on a snowy night. 

Zelda pressed closer to him in their shared chair and studied the flickering fireplace. “I just smile and try to make conversation. If it upsets you that much, talk to him about it.”

This was no easy suggestion, as Link found it hard to approach his brother about anything anymore. Darcel only looked straight on with the same strange, unreadable expression whenever Link attempted any exchange of words that was more than a few sentences. Link learned to stop trying, and so with each passing month Darcel became more of a stranger to his twin brother. 

As a final insult, Darcel hadn’t shown up to the small gathering two weeks ago initiated by Zelda and Impa. They had wanted to celebrate his and Link’s eighteenth birthday, but with one of the guests of honor missing, the affair was a half-hearted one. 

Later that evening, after the guests had gone home, Link went outside for a bit of fresh air and found his brother practicing by the barracks. Link strolled up to a fence and folded his arms atop a rough wooden post. “You missed the party,” he called over the clang of Darcel’s blade against a practice dummy. The cool night, with its soft sounds, beckoned him to leave the barracks. He planted his feet in the springy grass and plucked at a loose splinter. 

Darcel paused to cast a brief look at Link. In the deep shadows of the waning evening, his red eyes glowed like dim embers. “It’s just a birthday,” Darcel said, offhandedly, in a soft voice. “I long ago stopped caring about having ever been born.”

“Darcel, don’t talk like that,” Link chided. “I know things have been rough, but we’ve been here almost an entire year now. Surely you’ve found something to keep you going if you’re still around after all these months.”

Darcel considered Link’s words in silence. “You’re right,” he admitted. “There is something that’s keeping me going.” He didn’t elaborate, choosing instead to return his attention to the nearest practice dummy. “Sorry for missing the party,” he added. Link snorted at the lack of remorse in the words. “I won’t miss the next gathering,” Darcel promised. He paused to study the glow of his blade in the rising moonlight. “In fact…” Darcel stretched his right arm out in preparation for a strike. “I aim to crash it.”

Darcel charged forward; sand kicked up from his boot heels. Link was stunned by the speed his brother had developed. With a sharp whistle, the sword cut through the air as it passed the practice dummy. The straw head fell to the ground.

The image of the beheaded dummy still lingered weeks later, on the eve of the ceremony. Darcel’s words were added to the flames and empty doorways of Link’s stress-induced nightmares. They played across Link’s mind outside of sleep as well, and he thought on them often. 

_I won’t miss the next gathering… I aim to crash it._

The coming-of-age ceremony tomorrow afternoon was the only gathering Link could think of. Did Darcel plan to ruin such a monumental event? There was no reason to do such a thing. 

Link told himself this as he wandered the castle halls in search of Darcel. He concluded he was simply overreacting. He was nervous about the ceremony, after all. Being recognized as a man in Hyrule was a huge step. It was natural for his stressed mind to jump to strange conclusions. 

Content with this reasoning, Link lifted his head and straightened his body from its thoughtful slouch. He cast his blue gaze around the music room he had come to, but Darcel wasn’t here either. Link returned to the hall, sighing, and decided to check on the library. If Ganondorf was lingering there again, chances were good Darcel was there as well.

#

“…sun is blocked, panic will…”

A snatch of peculiar conversation stopped Link outside the library door. He leaned against the fragrant wood of the doorframe, just out of sight, and stilled his breaths as he strained his ears. The voice dropped to the low tones of a conspiratorial whisper, and Link recognized Vaati’s voice. Ganondorf’s deeper rumble chimed in here and there. Link inched closer to the doorway, intent on sneaking his head around it for a peek into the room. He willed his body to move silently with each minuscule shift.

“What are you doing?”

The voice spoke up behind Link’s back, startling him badly. He spun around with a cry of surprise. It was Darcel. Dressed all in black, Link’s twin glared at him from within the shadow of his gray-white bangs.

“I asked you what you’re doing,” Darcel pressed as Link caught his breath. He folded his arms and shifted on his feet. The leather of his boots creaked.

Link unstuck his throat and forced his trembling limbs to relax. He could hear that the conversation in the library was now paused. Tension surrounded him on both sides, pressing in and sending a trickle of sweat down his spine. “I was looking for you, actually,” Link explained.

Darcel’s eyes narrowed. “What for?”

“To talk.” Now the words were coming easier. Whatever the two men within the library were expecting, Link’s answer was not it. The sensation of their watchful eyes on the back of his neck left him. “Just to talk,” Link reiterated with an easy smile. “Like we used to talk as kids. Like brothers.”

“I’m not your--a kid anymore,” Darcel said. The catch in his words went by Link. “And neither are you.”

“So we’ll talk as brothers instead,” Link said. “Or as men, if you prefer. Please, Darcel, what’s ten minutes of your time?”

“Ten minutes I’ll never get back,” Darcel retorted. Nevertheless, he followed Link down several halls until they reached a door leading to the castle gardens. At such a late hour, only the moonflower vines were in bloom. Their large, milky blossoms bobbed in the wake of the Hylians who passed under the terraces on which the plant clung. Stone benches were set up along the pebbled path through the gardens. On Link’s silent cue, he and his brother took seats on the next one they came across. “So talk,” Darcel prompted as soon as he was seated.

Link cast his brother a sad look. An enormous gulf took up the few inches of space between them. When Link tried for a smile, the gesture came out contorted, and he abandoned the effort. His eyes found the ground between his boots. “Tomorrow we become men.”

“I’m already a man,” Darcel said.

“In age,” Link tacked on. “But you’re not officially recognized according to tradition.”

_“Tradition?”_ Darcel snorted a short laugh and clapped his hands onto his knees. “What does this land’s tradition mean to me? It never cared for me. I’m recognized by those who matter.”

“Would ‘those who matter’ be Ganondorf and Vaati?” Link asked. When Darcel didn’t answer, Link raised a pleading look to his twin. “Darcel, please… I think they might be bad news. I know Gan’s always been there for us, but ever since that Wind Mage came along…” He shook his head. Darcel was showing no signs of listening. “Darcel, I just don’t want you to follow them down a dark path.”

“They care about me,” Darcel argued.

“I care about you more,” Link returned.

Darcel leapt to his feet. With fists clenched, he glared down at Link. _“Don’t lie to me!”_ he nearly screamed. Link could only look on in shock. “You care more for Zelda than you ever did for me! Hell, you care more for those dumb animals in the stables. I know--I watch you!”

“And I watch you.” Link rose to his feet. He, however, had an easier time keeping anger from showing in his body and words. “I also watch Ganondorf and Vaati, and I can tell something isn’t right between the three of you. It’s almost as if you’re planning something terrible.” Darcel bared his teeth in a smile, and Link’s stomach dropped. “Darcel--”

“It’s no concern of yours, Link,” Darcel cut in. He turned his feet toward the castle. “After tomorrow, you won’t have to worry about it anymore.”

Something in Darcel’s words set Link on edge. His body shivered, and before he knew it he was hurrying after his brother to halt him. Something was wrong, his mind insisted. _Something was wrong._

A gust of wind forced Link back on staggering feet. He regained his footing as the wind coiled into existence as a miniature tornado. Link looked through the swirling dust and saw Darcel’s eyes widen with alarm. He turned tail and ran the next second, leaving Link to back away and raise an arm to shield his eyes from the tornado’s detritus.

A last gust of wind snapped the tornado apart into small breezes. Link lowered his arm and blinked dirt from his watering eyes. Vaati now stood where the wind once raged. Not a single lilac strand of hair was out of place, and there was a dangerous look in the one eye not obscured by his long bangs.

“Link,” Vaati greeted with a minimal nod of his head. “Why are you troubling your brother?”

“I’m not the one he needs to worry about,” Link said with more courage than he felt.

Vaati’s countenance darkened, and a slight sneer twisted his lips. “You know…” He took a few steps to close the distance between himself and Link to less than a foot. “I never really liked you,” the Wind Mage concluded. His visible eye studied Link with deadly calculation. “Something about you _irks_ me. Something about you… is _off.”_

He reached out toward Link, who knew better than to show fear by stepping back. Nails that were a tad too sharp pressed gently into Link’s skin when Vaati caressed his left cheek. “You’re going to be trouble, aren’t you, child?” Vaati murmured.

Strangely, Link didn’t think this last was directed solely at him. Vaati’s eyes had taken on a distant look. Link tolerated the small strokes of the Wind Mage’s fingers and declared, “I’m only looking out for the ones I love. And I’m not a child.”

The Wind Mage’s eyes snapped back into clearer focus. _“In age, but you’re not officially recognized according to tradition.”_ Vaati mimicked Link’s voice down to the very inflection. He smiled when he saw Link recognize the conversation was watched. “I know you’ve been tailing me on the princess’s orders, child, and Ganondorf is aware of your pathetic spying attempts as well. You would have done better to learn a thing or two from your brother. It could have saved you.”

Vaati tossed his hair away from his face with a shake of his head. The pupils of his red eyes, fixed on Link, stretched into cat-like slits. The hand stroking Link’s cheek shifted down to seize the Hylian’s jaw in a hard grip. Link cried out and struggled to pull away. He stopped when he realized Vaati would sooner rip the jaw off than let go. 

“Don’t worry, child, it’s okay.” Vaati’s voice was briefly kind before it took on a lethal edge. “I’ll make it quick.”

The crunch of pebbles announced another arrival to the garden. Link watched Vaati’s eager eyes tense at the sound. The narrow pupils contracted further and rounded out into normal circles. The hand was already gone from Link’s jaw. He flexed it with a pained sound as Vaati retreated into the sweeping shroud of his violet cloak.

“I wasn’t going to do anything,” Vaati said to the person standing out of sight. _“This_ time,” he added, flashing Link an almost friendly, albeit toothy, smile. 

“Leave us,” spoke a voice Link knew well.

Vaati turned and strode away. Link watched him until the last inch of violet hem disappeared. His eyes found Ganondorf next, revealed in the moonlight. Adoration for his role model and misgiving for the man he was slowly revealing himself to be warred within Link’s mind. The Hylian’s face switched between suspicion and a yearning for it all to be just another nightmare.

Ganondorf stepped up to take Vaati’s vacated place. “Link, you know you and Darcel are like sons to me--”

“What are you planning for the ceremony tomorrow?” Link cut in. 

Ganondorf broke off, sighed, and shook his head. “I plan to attend,” he replied, simply.

“That’s not the answer I’m looking for,” Link snapped, his anger winning out for the moment. 

Ganondorf swept his arm up. By the time Link tensed in preparation to draw away, a wide hand was already against his brow, pushing up his blonde bangs to make contact with the skin. The palm felt heavy and warm; it dredged up old childhood memories. Link felt his body and mind grow sluggish as if in sleep. 

“And just what are you looking for, Link?” Ganondorf asked in a whisper. The Hylian’s eyelids dropped, fluttered open, and dropped again to remain closed. “Show me.”

Link sighed, and his body slumped on his feet. In the shadow of Ganondorf’s braced hand, his eyelids twitched with the dreams that normally only he could see. 

“Such simple desires,” Ganondorf murmured, envious, as he watched Link ride a brown mare across a paddock. A young, blonde woman waved to him from the other side of the paddock’s fence. “Such a pure spirit.”

Ganondorf shifted his hand and the image faded from his mind, but he kept two fingers on Link’s brow while the Hylian dreamt on. “I can offer you a chance--that’s all,” Ganondorf said. A yellow-white glow bloomed to life where his fingers touched Link’s skin. “Forget what you saw and heard tonight, Link. Tomorrow you’ll be late for the ceremony. You’ll arrive after the initial attack is launched. That is the only chance I can give you. The rest of your life afterwards will be up to you.” 

Ganondorf dropped his hand with a sigh. “Vaati was right. Had you learned from your brother, you could have been under my protection in full as well,” Ganondorf reflected on what he had seen within Link’s dreams. “Then again, perhaps there was never the chance you would turn like your twin.”

Link offered no comment, of course, and Ganondorf began to pace in front of the Hylian. “What would you have me do?” he asked the unaware teenager. “I grew up watching my people -- _my family_ \--suffer in the desert. I was their king, but I could do nothing against the forces of nature. What sorcery I learned from my mothers was inadequate in the face of such misery.” He stopped and ran his hands through his hair. “When they told me to make war--to claim some of this beautiful land for myself and my people--I was only thinking about the prosperity I could bring as king of the Gerudo.”

Link wavered on his feet when Ganondorf clamped hands onto his shoulders. “You know what I’m talking about. Your life is better here in the castle than it was in the low district, right? So you can’t blame me for coveting Hyrule. Yes, I thought I had changed.” Ganondorf broke away and paced again. “I was made a servant of Hyrule, but I was living in this wonderful kingdom, and I cherished my place here.” His hand went to the charm hanging against his chest, and the sand inside it shifted as his fingers stroked the feathers. “But it was at the cost of discarding everything that made me a Gerudo.”

Ganondorf dropped his hand and cast Link one last, saddened look for the night. “I’m sorry, Link, but my mothers are right. I must claim Hyrule for myself and the Gerudo. All we’ve known is suffering. We deserve as much as anyone else. You understand.” He walked back to Link, ruffled the Hylian’s hair, and kissed the top of his head. “I’ll keep Darcel safe for you. Just take care of yourself.”

Link opened his eyes and blinked to adjust his vision. He took in the empty garden surrounding him with mounting confusion. What was he doing here, and at such a late hour? He had to get to bed. The ceremony was tomorrow afternoon, and he had to be well-rested. On quick feet, Link left the garden, his thoughts only on the soft bed awaiting him. 

#

_“Welcome, one and all, to the annual coming-of-age ceremony!”_

King Daphnes’s voice rang out over the crowd gathered in Castle Town’s public square. In response, his subjects voiced their enthusiasm with applause and cheers. The king stood before them on a constructed platform hung with large pennants depicting the Royal Family’s crest, as well as some dyed in colorful solids. Closest to the platform, almost a dozen eighteen-year old Hylian men were gathered in a tense crowd, soaking in the king’s words, the eager noise of the crowd, and the thick, candied air of the festival-like ceremony.

Zelda, standing to her father’s right in her best attire, would have found the young men’s nervousness amusing if only her two closest friends were part of the group. But Link was gone from his bed that morning, and Darcel was also not to be found. Given his recent absence from the birthday party two weeks ago, Zelda had half-expected Darcel’s nonappearance. Still, she was equally troubled to see him missing. 

Furtively, as if she sensed he was somehow responsible, Zelda cast a look to her left. Ganondorf stood on the platform as well, slightly behind and to the left of Daphnes. The Gerudo was in his official ambassador garb, complete with a decorative sword on his belt. Zelda frowned. She couldn’t recall Ganondorf wearing such an accessory for past ceremonies.

Ganondorf both sensed and saw Zelda’s glance. He watched her note his sword with a frown, and he turned to her with a small smile and a respective nod of his head. Zelda returned the nod after a lengthy pause. She turned her head forward to appease the crowd with her attention.

Ganondorf turned forward as well and tried to ignore the twists in his gut that the princess’s suspicious eyes prompted. His eyes scanned the edges of the large crowd until he found a familiar form dressed in purple. Vaati was circling the spectators with the carefulness of a wolfos sizing up prey. 

_Last chance to say no,_ a voice deep in Ganondorf’s head spoke up. _You could have a good life here. The Gerudo are in a good position under Nabooru’s leadership._

_Stop hesitating,_ Koume snapped in Ganondorf’s ear.

_Do it,_ Kotake added. 

Red eyes caught Ganondorf’s yellow ones, and the Gerudo folded his arms in what appeared to be a casual gesture. Taking his cue, Vaati disappeared into the shadows of an empty kiosk. The clouds overhead began to thicken and blacken.

“…and so today I say to all of you--” Daphnes cut his words off when a drop of water fell onto his nose. He blinked in surprise and shook his head to clear off the water. When two more drops fell onto his cheeks, he looked up. Above the town, the sky was blanketed in gray clouds that were darkening swiftly. In short time, a thick curtain of rain was pouring down. 

The crowd was only just beginning to voice concern when a pure darkness fell over the town. The clouds had taken on the blackness of night. A crack of thunder rippled across the sky, and several people screamed. Hardly anything could be seen through the rain and the darkness. 

A bolt of lightning split the uneasy air. It struck the gathered young men awaiting formal recognition. The crowd screamed as the young men and those nearby were instantly burned or electrified to death. The bolt lasted several seconds, and in its jarring white light Zelda looked across the public square to see Vaati standing atop a kiosk. His arms were open, and his palms faced up toward the sky. A manic, toothy grin split his face as his cat-like red eyes looked on at the storm as if it was a divine a manifestation. Yet this was no heavenly show of power. This was twisted and evil, and when darkness fell over the square again, Zelda felt a chill race along her spine.

People were screaming. Sandals and boots slapped against the stone ground, contesting with the ripping thunder overhead. Countless bolts of lightning sang down with ear-splitting cracks, striking houses and lighting them on fire. In each white burst of light, Zelda saw strange and terrifying creatures emerge from the shadows of alleys to set upon the panicked Castle Town subjects. 

_“Daddy!”_ Zelda screamed. She reached for her father’s hand in the darkness. Somewhere close by, the sound of a blade being drawn cut over the screams and thunder. When Zelda found her father’s hand, it was only to feel in jerk and slacken in death. The next burst of lightning showed Ganondorf extracting his sword from the king’s back.

Zelda fell into a darkness not unlike that which surrounded her and her dying people. When she next became aware of herself, she was fleeing down the road toward the castle. 

_Impa, Impa, where are you?_ Zelda thought as she stumbled in the dark. The nurse had volunteered to search for Link and Darcel. Now Zelda couldn’t find her either. She desperately hoped Impa hadn’t met an unfortunate end at the hand of Ganondorf’s monsters. 

A sharp scream cut the dark ahead of Zelda. It was male. One of the castle guards? Zelda quickened her steps, and soon the outline of the castle’s front gate came into view. The gate was open, and its guard lay slain in the middle of the road. Someone was standing over the body.

In a flash of lightning, Zelda recognized grey-white hair and dark clothes. For a moment she was too shocked to call out Darcel’s name. The lightning’s flash had reflected off of something long and sharp in his hand. Darkness fell, and the next flash revealed Darcel hurrying toward her with his hands empty.

“Zelda,” Darcel said, stopping in front of her. He looked and sounded relieved. “I’m here for you. I’ll keep you safe. Just come with me.” He offered his hand.

Zelda hesitated to take the extended hand. She shook her head and took a step back. 

“What’s wrong?” Darcel was a little breathless, but he smiled at Zelda. It was a true smile; his first in months. Here, framed by murder and darkness, it looked wrong. “Zelda, come on. I won’t let anything bad happen to you.”

_“Princess Zelda! My lady, don’t go with him!”_

A guard was stumbling toward Zelda and Darcel from the direction of the castle. He passed through the open gate with sword drawn. Blood was leaking out between the plates of his armor. “Don’t go with him, my princess!” the guard warned again. “He’s a murderer! He butchered the castle guards--”

Darcel drew his sword and marked the guard with cold calm as the injured man stepped up to him. The guard’s first and only attempt to land a blow ended with his heart pierced by Darcel’s blade. The young Hylian shoved the corpse off his sword with a hard hand that next caught Zelda’s wrist before she could flee. 

Zelda swung a foot up to catch the side of his head; she was not idle in her years under Impa’s care. Darcel caught the foot and shoved it away. When Zelda struggled to regain her balance, he tugged her close enough to pin most of her body against his. “Enough!” Darcel hissed into the princess’s ear. He whistled long and loud next, making Zelda wince against the sound.

A shadow answered the call. It worked its way down the path from Castle Town, gliding over rocks and tree roots without breaking speed. When it reached Darcel, it grew up from the ground to take on the form of a stalfos.

Darcel shoved Zelda into the stalfos’s bony arms. “Take her to the castle and detain her.” The stalfos nodded and tightened its grip around the princess. Zelda’s screams faded behind Darcel as he headed toward Castle Town with sword in hand.

#

_Stupid, stupid, stupid…_ Link repeatedly berated himself as he raced across Hyrule Field as fast as he could run. He was going to be late. The position of the sun told him the king’s opening remarks had already started. If he was lucky, Link could slip in through the crowd and join the other young men as if he was never missing. If only he hadn’t grown so distracted with helping Malon at Lon Lon Ranch… But his nerves had needed some winding down, so it was only his fault he would be late.

The drawbridge was within a half-mile when the sky above Link blackened. Seconds later, a terrifying bolt of lightning stabbed down behind the Castle Town curtain wall. When it vanished, screams began to rise on the wind. Link’s breath tightened in his throat. He stood in the open field beneath the growing downpour and listened to the dying sounds of people he knew and cared for. He was soon rushing across the field. 

Link reached the drawbridge with burning lungs and a racing heart. He was within the shadow of the curtain wall when a large crowd of people came barreling across the drawbridge toward him. He had no time to get out of the way. The first two people ran past him, knocking him with their elbows and voicing their fear inches from his ears. The rest of the crowd broke against Link, forcing him down onto his back against the drawbridge. Panicked feet threatened to stampede the life out of him.

_“Link!”_

Strong hands seized Link under his arms and yanked him to his feet. He staggered along with the crowd, barely able to keep up with his rescuer. It was Impa, and she looked terrifying in her fear.

“The king is dead,” the Sheikah relayed. _“To Kakariko Village, everyone!”_ Impa shouted this, and the crowd turned at her words as if they were a flock herded by a sheepdog. Their feet found the dirt road to the bridge that spanned the narrow Zora River. Beyond it, the beginning of the path to Kakariko Village rested at the foot of Death Mountain. 

“It was a coup,” Impa explained to Link in a tight voice on the edge of tears. “Ganondorf murdered King Daphnes. He also released dark creatures onto the crowd, and that Wind Mage is causing this storm. So many people have died…”

“Zelda,” Link prompted, his own voice tight. He stumbled on a rough patch of grass and regained his feet. The crowd around him stank of fear and confusion. “Impa, where is Zelda?”

“I don’t know!” Impa nearly wailed. Link knew this admittance, more than anything else, was what ate away at Impa’s heart and soul at the moment. “I was looking for you and Darcel on the princess’s request. The two of you weren’t at the ceremony--”

Link’s gut twisted.

“--and I had to decide between one princess and the rest of the survivors. Link…”

“You did the right thing,” Link assured her. His voice was tight. “It was what Zelda would want.”

“I’m glad you weren’t at the ceremony, Link,” Impa said. “I’m glad you’re alive, at the least. I pray the same holds true for Zelda.”

“I’ll find her, Impa,” Link vowed. “I’ll find her alive.” He cursed himself silently the next moment. How could he forget? “Do you know if Darcel got out in time?”

Impa’s look was quick, and her face wan. “I don’t know anything about him,” she said in a voice uncharacteristically flat. “But I believe you when you say you’ll find Zelda. There’s something special about you, Link. A great aura of destiny surrounds you. You may very well play an important role in what lies ahead.”

To this, Link said nothing. He didn’t want to be burdened with destiny. He wasn’t anyone capable of great feats. So he kept silent and hurried alongside the Sheikah, helping those who needed aid across the field and up the pass to Kakariko Village. And he kept his mind focused only on how he could find Zelda and Darcel.

#

Vaati’s hysterical laughter echoed around the grand entrance hall of the conquered Hyrule Castle. It belittled the silence given off by the corpses strewn about the room, and birthed unease in his companions. In the midst of his laughter, Vaati dropped onto his back against the thick, bloodstained carpet of the hall as if it was a blanket of snow. His arms and legs fanned out, smearing lines of crimson in their wake. He laughed some more and flipped his legs up and back, gaining his feet in a fluid arc before taking off into the open space of the high ceiling.

Darcel had never seen a man fly. He could only stand and watch with mouth agape until Ganondorf’s voice stirred him. 

“What did you do with the princess?” the Gerudo asked. He had fallen into a thoughtful pose against a column near the door. “Did you capture her as planned?”

“Yes, but she came unwillingly,” Darcel revealed.

Ganondorf frowned and straightened out of his stance. “That wasn’t part of the plan. You told me only this morning you would be able to convince her.”

“I tried,” Darcel said quickly. “Honestly, I did. But a guard attempted to interfere. I had to kill him in front of her.” Ganondorf’s frown deepened. “I tried!” Darcel repeated.

Vaati descended to the floor alongside Darcel and clamped his hands on the young Hylian’s shoulders. His enthusiasm nearly sent both of them tumbling forward onto the floor. With difficulty, Darcel straightened his back and regained balance. “That won’t do, Darcel,” the Wind Mage remarked playfully. “You need to be a bit more charming than that.” He chuckled at Darcel’s scowl and kicked back up into the air.

“Ignore him,” Ganondorf said when Darcel’s face warped with irritation. “Bloodlust makes him giddy. Now, if the princess becomes a problem we won’t be able to run things efficiently around here. The coup was successful, but until I can collect more power and put it to functional use it’s going to be a rocky stretch of time.”

Darcel raised his eyebrows. “More power? From where?”

“Never mind that,” Ganondorf said, waving a hand. He wasn’t about to admit he knew nothing of his mothers’ plans beyond this point. “What I’m saying is, if the princess can be bargained with--say, she cooperates if we stay away from the coup survivors--things will go a lot smoother. Additionally, we can use her continued good health to keep any uprisings from getting started.” 

From above, Vaati called down, “You could always have Darcel work some of his charm to convince the princess to cooperate.” His laughter rang out again.

“That’s actually not a bad idea,” Ganondorf said with a nod. “You wanted the princess, if my memory serves correctly.”

A burst of wind announced Vaati’s second landing. Before Darcel knew what was happening, Vaati was leaning on his back again, nearly bending the Hylian over under his weight. “You wanted the princess,” Vaati echoed. He traced a long-nailed finger in random patterns across Darcel’s throat. The Hylian tilted his head back with jaw tense. “So take the princess,” the Wind Mage continued, whispering now. “Tell her it’s for the good of what remains of her people and country. Tell her you expect full cooperation or there will be…” Vaati’s fingernail jerked, and a thin line of blood bloomed across the underside of Darcel’s chin. “Consequences.”

Darcel twitched at the slight pain and only relaxed when Vaati stepped away from him. The Wind Mage regarded Darcel from behind his flyaway hair, and his mouth split into a grin. He back-flipped into the air and took off for the second floor hall. “I’m going to pick out my room!”

Darcel wiped the blood away from his neck, grimacing when his rough hands sparked more pain across the cut. “Do we have to keep Vaati around now that the coup is done?” he asked Ganondorf.

Ganondorf chuckled a little at that. “If we send him away, he’ll only come back and slit your throat in your sleep. Like I said, he’s giddy from bloodlust. Give him a day and he’ll be back to his quieter, malicious self.”

“I’m not sure which one I like less,” Darcel muttered. He turned and started for the nearest staircase.

“Darcel, wait.”

Darcel halted and turned around. Ganondorf walked up to him and reached out with both hands to touch the Hylian’s ears. When the hands fell away, Darcel reached up to discover a ring of metal in each of his ears. He took one of the earrings out to study its red color. Ganondorf’s smile was almost fatherly before he waved Darcel off.

The young man turned and walked away, and Ganondorf marked the bloodstains on his dark clothes. Darcel was tainted in more ways than one now. Every corpse in the castle was a mark of his twisted growth under the Gerudo’s watchful eye. Ganondorf raised fingers to his nose bridge and closed his eyes against the gore. The stench of death thickened each breath. He had allowed Darcel to do this. He had _encouraged_ it. How could he not see what he was leading the boy to?

_Enough, Ganondorf,_ Koume spoke up, out of sight. _You have done a grand thing._

_Hyrule is ours,_ Kotake continued. _You have achieved everything we’d hoped for._

_The boy had to be prepared for your new world,_ Koume assured him. 

_Yes. He would have died like these guards if not for your protection,_ Kotake reasoned.

_Now he will flourish under your continued care._

_He will thank you for it, and support you in return. You, the Dark Lord of Hyrule._

Ganondorf relaxed his pinched fingers and dropped his arm to study the fine weave of his ambassador garb. A clench of his hand warped the fabric. The colors shifted, and Gerudian markings touched the hems. All traces of Hyrulean nobility left, leaving the sharper-edged stylization of a once Gerudo king. A cape flowed and fluttered down to touch the floor behind Ganondorf’s heels, and a large, jeweled ornament crossed his forehead. 

_This is the true you,_ Koume said.

_We are proud of you,_ Kotake added. 

Ganondorf swept his eyes around the hall, taking in the corpses once more. His eyes moved up the staircase that Darcel had climbed, and his shoulders sagged with a sigh. The remnants of Darcel’s work vanished in curls of black flame, and Ganondorf walked away to seek out the royal chambers. 

#

From a tower window, Zelda watched Castle Town burn. Black smoke hung heavy over the area, obscuring most of the view, but the glow of fire was clear enough beneath them. The princess didn’t cry--not yet. At the moment, she felt only a sort of numbness. She was hoping to wake up at any moment and find everything was only a terrifying nightmare. 

The lock on the other side of the tower room’s door clicked open. Zelda turned from the window to watch Darcel walk into the room. He closed the door behind him, and Zelda sensed him cast a small bit of sorcery to reinstate the lock. She tensed, wary.

A silence passed as the two of them stared at each other. Darcel was the first to move. He crossed the room with slow steps until he stood before Zelda. He braced his forearm against the wall over her head and leaned in, enclosing her and forcing her back to the wall. The air was close between them. Zelda could smell blood and smoke on Darcel’s clothes.

“Your kingdom is lost,” Darcel said. 

“Darcel, what’s happened to you?” Zelda asked. She took in the red eyes, the pale skin, and the unnatural hair. They were familiar features, yet unfamiliar.

Darcel ignored the question. “Your people still live--a modest population, but they live. They fled to Kakariko Village.”

“And?” Zelda prompted, knowing there was more.

“And,” Darcel picked up, “if you want them to remain alive, you must cooperate.” He raised his free hand and trailed fingers down a lock of Zelda’s goldenrod hair.

The princess reached up and cupped his hand in both of hers. “You don’t want to do this.”

“Quite the contrary,” Darcel replied. “It’s something I’ve wanted for a long, long time.”

“Darcel, I don’t think of you in that way. I love Li--”

_“Don’t say his name!”_ Darcel snapped. The words cracked the tense air between him and the princess.

Zelda dropped her hands and turned her head to the side as if expecting a blow. It never came, and she turned her eyes back to Darcel. Her gaze studied him in silence. It surprised Darcel when she reached up to trace the curve of his left earring. “You’re a man now,” Zelda said, her words flat. A smile struggled to her mouth. “They match the necklace I made for you last year. Do you remember it?”

Darcel stuck his hand down the front of his shirt and snagged the line of leather that hung beneath the fabric. The ruby was tugged out and allowed to dangle from his fingers in front of Zelda’s nose. 

Zelda’s eyes slipped closed. “What was that you said? My people will be safe?”

Darcel dropped the necklace to his chest. “Ganondorf gave me his word.”

Zelda opened her eyes and scoffed. “As if that’s of any worth. My father is dead, and whatever Ganondorf thinks his coup accomplished, I am still the rightful ruler of Hyrule. And as ruler, I must be prepared to make sacrifices for the good of those who follow me.”

“Zelda, I would follow you to the ends of the world,” Darcel said. He dipped his head, but his lips had barely touched Zelda’s neck when she flinched away from him.

“What do you think you’re doing?”

Darcel raised his head, confused. “I thought…”

“You thought _what?”_ Zelda said with such venom that Darcel dropped his braced arm and took a step back. The princess appeared to expand in the extra granted space, and her eyes were cold and hard when she fixed them on Darcel. “You thought that by ‘sacrifice’ I meant you could have me? That I would cooperate if you _asserted_ yourself over me?” She barked out a laugh that cut like a knife.

Darcel fought the urge to bury his fingernails into his palms. “If you don’t do as I say, I’ll be forced to--”

“This is not your show,” Zelda cut in. “Whatever role you think you’re playing is a false one.” She smiled then, smugly. “You want me, Darcel? Come on then. Let’s see if you can take me.”

Darcel’s limbs willed him to inflict harm on every inch of the smug princess’s body. He fought the urge with all of his being, but the anger petered out despite his efforts. It clenched his teeth and tightened his shoulders. “You’ll pay for this. Your people will die, and then you’ll see that you should have cooperated.”

The leg moved too fast for Darcel to block it a second time. A small foot connected with the side of his head, and he dropped to the floor with a cry of pain. He made to rise as soon as his hands hit the floor. A second foot dropped onto the back of his neck and pressed down, stopping him. Darcel turned his head to show Zelda a livid grimace. “You _bitch._ You’ll pay for this!”

“So you’ve said,” Zelda replied, unimpressed. “And yet there you are on the floor, and here I am at an advantage. Do you really think you’ll have any better luck if my clothes are off?” A growl rose in Darcel’s throat. Zelda added more weight to her braced foot, and the sound cut off into fearful silence. “You will leave,” Zelda commanded. “I will cooperate, but you’ll take nothing more from me to assure that. You’ll just have to take _my word.”_

The foot moved away. Darcel was on his feet in the next two seconds. He moved toward Zelda, no longer holding his anger back. Let it come. Let it bruise her skin and break her spirit. 

Zelda ducked under a wild fist and jabbed a bent elbow up. The _whoosh_ of a lost breath passing by her ear was reward enough. She slammed her back against Darcel’s deflated chest and once more sent him crashing to the floor, this time on his back. Her heel found his right kidney. It would have broken a rib next if he didn’t roll out of her immediate reach. Zelda stepped back and took up a ready stance as Darcel struggled to his feet.

“Bitch,” Darcel gasped. He didn’t look at Zelda, and the suggestion of danger was gone from his shaking body. Zelda would have sworn he was on the verge of tears. 

Darcel stumbled to the door. It closed on his back with a quiet snick and the click of the reengaging lock.

Zelda closed her eyes and took a calming breath. She loosened her tense limbs and walked to the room’s small bed. There, she sat down on the edge of the mattress, covered her face in her hands, and grieved for the friends she had lost.

#

A soft hiss of pain caught Ganondorf’s ear as he walked one of the many halls of the castle. He followed the sound to a washroom and opened the door in time to see a colorful bruise on Darcel’s abdomen. It disappeared behind a wall of black cloth, and a furious gaze caught the Gerudo’s attention next. 

_“What?”_ Darcel snapped.

“I heard… Never mind.” Ganondorf leaned against the doorframe. “Did you speak to the princess?”

“In a manner of words,” Darcel hissed, glaring at nothing in particular. “She’ll cooperate,” he added, and his face darkened more.

It would be dangerous to press the Hylian, Ganondorf decided. In any case, the story was clear in the shaking limbs and pained, angry eyes. Ganondorf wished Darcel a good night and closed the door on the thick air of defeat. Not for the first time, regret weighed heavily on his body as he resumed his patrol of the halls.


	7. Still Just a Child

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tired of sitting idle in Kakariko Village, Link decides to take action to save his brother and his love, and he unknowingly takes his first hard step towards becoming the hero Hyrule needs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for your continued support!
> 
> There's some harsh language and violence in this chapter.
> 
> Feedback is greatly appreciated, thank you!

# In the Shade of a Hero

### Still Just a Child

The first three days after Ganondorf’s coup were tainted by a pall of fear. Both the refugees who had fled to Kakariko Village and the resident villagers who took them in were convinced that at any hour the dark man from the desert would arrive to finish what he had started. But when the fourth sunrise again brought calm birdsong and still, quiet air, the survivors emerged from their hosts’ homes to go about their new lives in ease. Soon the fear had lifted somewhat, and the people were working as one to complete chores. The organ grinder resumed pumping out melodies from within his windmill home, and the cuccos were once again managing escapes from their pen.

When it came to this latter, Link readily volunteered his skills in rounding up and calming each errant bird for its keeper; a young woman named Anju. The work kept him busy for an hour, and that was an hour he didn’t spend on thoughts of Princess Zelda or of his brother Darcel. The fates of these two people--along with the numerous other missing civilians--chewed at Link. He had spent the first three days indoors, pacing endlessly while the rat in his mind scratched and dug, stirring up terrible thoughts of what could have happened. Link ignored the rumors that Darcel had a hand in what had transpired during the coup. He rejected survivors’ claims that his brother was amongst the townsfolk near the end of the attack, cutting down stragglers who weren’t quick enough to escape. And yet…

_I won’t miss the next gathering… I aim to crash it._

A dummy decapitated with a well-practiced slice…

Link shook these latest thoughts out of his head only to have them circle back to his usual worry about Zelda. If the princess was dead, Link was sure the kingdom would have caught wind of it by now. They already knew the king was dead, slain by Ganondorf--a man Link had once trusted as good, if not a bit on the roguish side. Yet little by little over the past year, that man had showed the true cards he’d so far held close to his chest. Now the truth was out: Ganondorf was a usurper--had likely always planned to be--and he had led everyone to believe differently to further secure his dominion by taking them all by utter surprise.

_No, not everyone,_ Link corrected himself. _Zelda knew he was bad news._ He laughed bitterly at his thoughts, and said to the cucco in his hands, “And there we were: two teenagers who thought we could root his intentions out.”

The last cucco fluttered into its pen, and Link accepted Anju’s thanks. With the herding done, Link mounted the stone steps to Impa’s house and let himself in without knocking. As the village’s founder, Impa had the largest home, and she was currently playing host to two dozen men, women, and children. During the night, every foot of floor space was covered in blankets and pillows that comforted the slight mountains of sleeping bodies atop them. Now in the early morning, the bed things were stacked neatly against the wall, and the building was near-empty. Impa was sitting at a scrubbed table with a steaming cup of tea before her.

Link took the seat opposite her. “It’s time to start discussing how to rescue Zelda,” he said in a quiet voice.

Impa raised her ceramic cup, took a minute sip of tea, and lowered it back to the tabletop where it touched down with a faint clink. “Yes,” she agreed in a voice as quiet as Link’s own. “She’s alive,” the nurse said, and Link relaxed with relief. “I can feel her somewhat. I sense… she is troubled.”

“Is she hurt?” Link asked. He leaned forward, eager for any news. The tea’s spicy aroma warmed his nose.

Impa frowned with a thoughtful hum in her throat. “Not exactly, I think. Mentally, she is troubled, as I said. Physically, I believe she’s fine. She has her father’s strong will and my stronger teachings. But even a strong princess can’t survive forever under the darkness that Ganondorf is beginning to spread. She will fade if we don’t help her.”

Link rose to his feet and planted his palms against the tabletop. “Then let’s help her!” he said, his stance and voice determined. “We’ll take on Ganondorf and--”

“A foolish plan,” Impa cut in so sharply that Link sat down. “The man clearly practices dark sorcery, and his pet Wind Mage is no lightweight despite his title.” She sighed. “Given Vaati’s skills in magic outside his mastery over wind, I’ve come to suspect he’s harboring a demon, and that alone is troubling. Demons are unpredictable--even controlled ones. They love blood, fear, and chaos. They will abandon orders and plans just to obtain even a small amount of any of those things from their victims. If Vaati is indeed hosting such a creature, it will be difficult to take him out of the picture.

“And then we still have Ganondorf to contend with when and if we can manage to eliminate Vaati. The desert man showed power I haven’t seen outside of ancient texts. His skills in magic are similar to a particular duo of ancient witches who once hailed from the far west. It is quite possible he learned his sorcery from them before or after he became a part of the castle guard. Perhaps the idea to overthrow King Daphnes was the witches’ plan as well. The old hags are known for their adoration of chaos and dark frivolity. Their victims’ pain gives them power. An entire kingdom suffering would be a feast to them.”

Link ran his hands over his face, looking lost. “So what do we do?” he mumbled.

“We rely on similarly ancient skills,” Impa replied with a smile that was quite smug for her. “The skills of the Sheikah. If we can infiltrate Hyrule Castle without being seen, we can liberate Zelda with little or no alarm raised.”

“And Darcel too,” Link added, smiling himself. He was beginning to feel hope again thanks to Impa’s encouraging words. 

The nurse’s smile faltered at Link’s comment. “Link, your brother--”

A distant cry of alarm cut Impa off. She turned her head toward an open window. Link did the same when another cry echoed the first. “Let’s go,” Impa said.

Link followed Impa’s quick steps out of her home and down several stairs and slopes to the heart of Kakariko Village. Villagers and displaced civilians were gathered along the edges of the grassy plain that was situated inside the village’s front gate. They huddled together and looked on in trembling silence at two men who were astride black horses by the village’s lone tree. The horses were ill-tempered. They pawed at the ground, and more than once attempted to bite one another. The dull clicks of their snapping teeth and the faint creak of shifting saddles and bridles were the only sounds breaking the stillness that had fallen over the village.

Link stopped short on the edge of the crowd. Impa ran ahead of him, leaving him to stare at the riders. One of them was Ganondorf--no surprise, given the hush of the villagers--but the other rider, looking quite at ease, was Darcel.

“No… Darcel!” Link called. 

The shout was drowned out by Ganondorf’s deep voice. “Greetings, my loyal subjects!” he boomed.

The villagers shifted uneasily at the choice of words, and one brave soul shouted out, “We’re subjects of the Royal Family!”

“Of course,” Ganondorf grumbled. “You still cling to your dead ties.” He cast a thin smile at Darcel, who rolled his red eyes before pulling from his pocket some tobacco and rolling papers. Ganondorf returned his attention to the villagers and continued, “I have come unarmed to welcome you into my kingdom with no strings attached and no more unnecessary bloodshed. You only have to give me your unwavering loyalty.”

“And what good is loyalty to you?” Impa retorted. She took a few steps out from the front of the crowd. “You, who pretended to be loyal only to cut the rightful king down--a king you swore to serve!”

“What meaning does a Hylian oath hold for a Gerudo?” Ganondorf remarked idly. Impa glared daggers at him.

Link had forced his legs to move, and he now pushed himself through the crowd. “Darcel!” he called when he was nearly to the front.

Darcel struck a match and cupped it close to his fresh cigarette. 

“We have your princess. Alive,” Ganondorf announced. 

A ripple of alarm and some relief swept through the villagers, and even Link paused at the news. Darcel shook his match out and took a deep drag of his cigarette. He still had not even glanced at Link.

“She is safe,” Ganondorf continued while Link resumed his struggle through the tense, unmoving crowd. “We’re taking good care of her, and we have no intention of using deadly force against her.”

“Then let her free!” Impa demanded in a strong voice. The villagers echoed her and, spurred by her words, they moved with new life.

Link was finally able to force his way through the shifting villagers, and he staggered out of the crowd. _“Darcel!”_ he shouted inches from his brother’s horse.

Darcel’s eyes finally snapped to his brother, but it was his horse that reacted stronger. When Link’s stumbling feet brought him too close, the horse reared up with a high whinny. Link saw two sharp hooves fill his vision and in an instant he was taken back to the time as a child when he was nearly trampled by Ganondorf’s horse. Only this time, there was no chance he could cower and hope to evade the death falling upon him. 

Out of the corner of his wide eyes, Link saw Ganondorf raise an open palm toward him. An instant later, a heavy blow of magic struck Link in his side. He was tossed to the side and hit the ground rolling. Feet away, the horse’s heavy hooves fell to the grass only to rise again. 

The magic had punched Link’s breath from him, but he wasn’t dead. He lay on the ground, catching his breath and holding his pained side. The crowd reeled in alarm not far from him. Link looked up to see his brother toss aside the cigarette and snag hold of the crazed horse’s reins. 

Ganondorf was glaring at Darcel. He snapped a few Gerudian words, and Darcel spared a heated look for his mentor. His hands snapped the reins hard to the right. The horse’s head jerked with the pull, and it cantered off, making a full circle around the tree. Darcel halted it in front of Ganondorf.

Ganondorf growled a few more Gerudian words, and he stuck his arm out to point a single finger at the village’s gate. Again, heated anger came to Darcel’s eyes. He tossed a final glare at Link, spurred his horse into a gallop, and left the village for the mountain pass to Hyrule Field.

Impa rushed to Link’s side. She helped him to his feet and hushed his hiss of pain. “Can you stand?” 

“I’m fine. I’m okay,” Link assured her. Impa dropped her arm, but stayed close. “I’m okay,” Link repeated. “Getting kicked by a bull is a lot worse.” He looked to Ganondorf. The Gerudo was watching him closely. When he saw Link standing unsupported, he gave a subtle nod of his head and turned back to the crowd at large.

“As I was saying…”

#

_“Why the fuck did you save him?”_

Vaati’s lips parted in a toothy grin, and he cast a look to Ganondorf to see how he would answer. The Gerudo had only just walked into the drawing room. Darcel paced before the fireplace while Vaati relished the tension surrounding him. Now Darcel stopped to stand with his fists clenched at his sides and a livid look fixed on Ganondorf. 

“Think about it, Darcel,” Ganondorf said with strained patience. In his chair, Vaati cut apart an apple and ate it piece by piece. “What would have happened if I had allowed Link--or anyone for that matter--to be harmed or killed when I was trying to reestablish diplomatic ties with the Hyrulean refugees?”

“Why do you have to be nice to them?” Darcel countered hotly. “I thought the whole point of this coup was to kill everyone who ever opposed us!”

“No, child,” Vaati spoke up before Ganondorf could reply. “The whole point was to obtain power. And power is nothing without something on which to exude it. A docile, submissive population is better than a rebellious one with ideas to overthrow an infant monarchy. Hence the promise of good treatment; hence the promise to keep the princess safe.”

“And my mothers have assured me there is more power to be had,” Ganondorf picked up. “However, they say only the Royal Family knows how to obtain it. That means Zelda is the only one, and she will be more cooperative if we continue to treat her subjects kindly.”

_“Our_ subjects,” Darcel corrected. He walked up to Ganondorf and stood toe to toe with the Gerudo, although the top of his head barely reached Ganondorf’s chin. Darcel swept a hand around the room. _“Our_ subjects. _Our_ castle. Our. Fucking. _Kingdom._ What more power is there that you could possibly want?”

Vaati’s eyes widened, and he slapped his head. “The Triforce. Of course. That’s what those witches are talking about, isn’t it?”

“An old myth,” Darcel countered.

Ganondorf shared Vaati’s frustration that he hadn’t seen it either. “A myth that thousands of men died for?” Ganondorf pointed out to Darcel. “A myth that buried Hyrule’s history in civil war and blood? The Triforce is no myth. It exists. It has to.”

“In the Sacred Realm,” Vaati confirmed, nodding. “The legend does indeed say that only the Royal Family knows how to enter that place. The entrance is in the Temple of Time, but it’s blocked by a massive stone door that no force or magic can move. To open it, you need three Spiritual Stones as well as a possession said to be passed down through each generation of the Royal Family.”

Darcel raised his eyebrows in growing interest. “What possession?”

Vaati laughed. “No idea. So why don’t you go upstairs to your princess’s room and convince her to tell us, hmmm? Or is that bruise on your pride still as fresh as the one under your shirt?” 

Darcel jerked as if stung. Without comment, he slinked out of the room, a self-aware hand on his side. 

Vaati regarded the squared-off core that was all which remained of his apple. “I think the child is growing on me,” the Wind Mage remarked. He tossed the apple core into the fire. It hissed as the remaining juices began to evaporate. “So much anger…”

“He damn-near killed his brother today,” Ganondorf said, dropping into a chair opposite Vaati’s.

“I know.” Vaati’s eyebrows rose in a brief, gleeful expression. “He told me. At length. You should have let him do it, _diplomatic ties_ be damned. That blonde child has troubled me from the start. He needs to die.”

Ganondorf laughed. “Link?” he questioned. Vaati nodded once, solemnly. “The kid’s no threat! He’s kind to a fault, and he has no greater ambition than to find a farm somewhere to raise cuccos. We don’t have to concern ourselves with him.”

Vaati’s joviality slipped away. He stood up and straightened his clothes before tossing his long bangs out of his eyes. “I’ll allow you your naiveté,” the Wind Mage said. “You are still just a child too, in some ways. You’ve barely had two decades of practice with your skills in sorcery and perception. Whereas I’ve had…” His eyes flickered. “…significantly longer. And I’m not softened by a friendship with the boy.”

“I am not--”

“But I’ll tell you now,” Vaati continued as if Ganondorf hadn’t spoken, “When the child arrives to this castle--and he will, likely tonight--I will not stand aside. If I find him sneaking around, I will kill him. He’s dangerous to your plans for power and to my wishes to have a little fun in this kingdom.” He flashed one of his toothy grins at Ganondorf. “Do we have an understanding?”

Ganondorf considered disagreeing. Vaati was forgetting who was supposed to be in charge. Yet there was no point in angering the dangerous Wind Mage. Ganondorf was confident Link was no threat, and would continue to be. He nodded.

Vaati planted his hands against the table and leaned toward Ganondorf. _“Say it.”_

Ganondorf’s yellow eyes narrowed, but he reiterated, “If Link should come to the castle, you’ll kill him. And I’ll allow it.”

Vaati straightened up. “Thank you.” He walked out of the room, head high. 

Seconds later, Ganondorf seized a dusty vase off the mantelpiece and threw it at a wall. It shattered with a satisfying crash, peppering the floor with stagnant water and dying flowers. Screaming would have helped, but it would also bring Vaati back to the room. Ganondorf quelled the desire and turned to face the fireplace. His fingers twirled at the flames, and they responded by fanning out to reveal Koume’s image. 

“Ganondorf!” the witch cried, delighted. Her features came and went within the flames. “You never call on us anymore.” 

“Is that Ganondorf?” cried Kotake, out of sight. “Let me speak to him!”

“You’ll get your turn! He’s _my_ son!”

“He’s my son too! Or did you forget that, you senile biddy?”

“I’m no more senile than you!”

“But you’re no less either!” Kotake’s laughter rang out of the flames. Her face bullied its way into view beside Koume. “How are you, Ganondorf?”

Ganondorf’s reply was a hard look. Without acknowledging either of his mothers, he said through clenched teeth, “The Wind Mage. When can I get rid of him?”

“What?” both Koume and Kotake said. 

“He was supposed to leave once the castle was secure,” Koume elaborated.

“The castle is secure, yes?” Kotake asked Ganondorf.

The Gerudo nodded. “Yes. Everyone either escaped or they’re dead, and those who are dead I’ve turned into stalfos. This castle’s too big for three people to keep running.”

“It should be only two people,” Koume said. A lick of flame outlined her frown. “Vaati told us he had other plans. He said he had no time to linger--not after spending a year on preparations.”

“He seems settled in,” Ganondorf told his mothers. He shifted on his feet. “He’s going to kill Link.”

“Who?” Kotake asked.

“Darcel’s brother,” Ganondorf elaborated.

The witches gave their answers in unison. “Let him.”

“There is something wrong about that boy,” Koume warned her son.

“He’ll be a detriment to our plans,” Kotake added. 

“You can’t know that,” Ganondorf said, laughing a little and shaking his head. “I mean…”

_That blonde child has troubled me from the start._

Ganondorf swallowed and shook his head again. “Link isn’t a threat,” he reiterated through a dry mouth.

“He is,” Koume insisted.

“We know,” Kotake assured Ganondorf. “Don’t let your feelings get in the way of what needs to be done, Ganondorf.”

Ganondorf braced both hands against the mantelpiece, leaned in toward the fire, and shouted, _“I’m not soft!”_ The flames spiked at the words, and a statuette on the mantelpiece trembled. His mothers were wise enough not to argue. They watched their son as he ran a hand over his face and took a deep breath. It was released in a long sigh. “Why didn’t you tell me about the Triforce?”

“We wanted to make sure you were capable of taking the castle first,” Koume explained. She ignored Ganondorf’s glare.

“Now that we know,” Kotake picked up, “we can make plans to acquire that supreme power. With it, we’ll be able to shape this kingdom into a world we want. And after that, no one will be able to stop us from conquering other lands.”

“I thought all of this was about giving back land and freedom to the Gerudo,” Ganondorf spoke up. 

“With the Triforce in our grasp, _all_ lands and freedoms will belong to the Gerudo,” Koume pointed out.

“You can do this, Ganondorf,” Kotake said, and her sister nodded beside her. “We are so close to having everything we’ve ever wanted.”

“Do no fail us, Ganondorf,” Koume said.

“And watch your back around that Wind Mage,” Kotake warned.

The fire sputtered, and the witches’ faces disappeared. Ganondorf straightened up, sneezing out ash. His body sagged on its feet. Instead of easing his worries, his mothers had only increased them. Likewise, the coup was supposed to take care of problems, but it had added to them.

“Perhaps Link was the smartest one out of us,” Ganondorf muttered. He moved his hand in a curt gesture, and the remains of the broken vase vanished into licks of black flame. 

#

Darcel had not looked in upon Zelda since the first night of her imprisonment. Stalfos tended to her needs; she didn’t need a human keeper when such able creatures were available. Darcel had his own tower room where he spent much of his day, positioned in the opposite direction from Zelda’s tower cell. The stairs to his room were identical to the ones that led up to Zelda. Despite this, Darcel’s feet stumbled more than once on the lips of the stairs as he climbed them to the princess’s room. On the top landing, he took a few seconds to steady his nerves. The door’s lock came undone with a bit of magic. Darcel pushed it open with care, his body tense in case the princess was waiting with a makeshift weapon in hand. 

Zelda was at the window again, looking out over the remains of Castle Town. The once-vibrant town was now a blackened skeleton of its former self. The last building had stopped smoldering only yesterday. Closer to the castle, the damage was both more and less. The gardens were intact but wilting, and no birds sang.

Darcel closed the door behind him. At the sound, Zelda turned around to face him. “So you’re back,” she said. “Have you come to try and take something else this time?”

Her mannerisms irked Darcel. She was acting more like a princess than she ever had before around him. Her stance was straight, and her face, smug; her tone had a royal taint to it. Darcel huffed and furrowed his brow in a glare. “Maybe I’ve come to take your life,” he threatened.

Zelda laughed. “What life?” she asked him. “I’m a prisoner in what was once my home, everyone I love is out of reach or dead, and one of my childhood friends is a stranger to me. If you want my life, take it. There isn’t much to it anymore.”

Genuine curiosity rose in Darcel. “In that case, would you so easily give your life up?”

Zelda’s answer was immediate. “If I had to, yes. I’m not afraid of death. Is that why you’re here?”

“No,” Darcel answered. His body sagged with disappointment. The answers were too curt; too short. She wanted nothing to do with him. “The Triforce,” Darcel prompted. “How do we obtain it?”

“’We’?” Zelda smiled thinly. “You’re so important as to speak for everyone now?” Darcel said nothing. “The Triforce is a myth--a fairytale populated in Hyrule’s history. It doesn’t exist outside of books and royal crests.”

A tingle of magic prickled Darcel’s arm. “Liar,” he accused. Zelda shrugged and turned to face the window again. Her defiant back tensed when Darcel drew near, pressing his chest close to her. “I wonder,” he murmured into her ear. “Do you value the life of your subjects as little as your own? Because I _will_ kill him.” The words were a hiss, and Zelda’s hands tightened around her elbows. “I nearly succeeded today. It was Ganondorf who spared him. And our new king is willing to extend that same benevolence indefinitely to every survivor in Kakariko Village. All you need to do is tell us how to get the Triforce.”

The seconds Darcel waited for Zelda’s answer stretched until it seemed they lasted hours. The princess finally moved, breaking the spell of warped time. She rolled the tension from her shoulders and blinked. “I’m sorry for how you’ve turned out, Darcel. You truly meant the world to me once.”

There was no tingle of magic indicating a lie this time. Darcel stepped back, momentarily nonplussed. No suitable retort found its way along his tied tongue. The door’s knob hit the small of his back. Had he crossed the room so quickly? “I’ll give you some time to think on your answer,” Darcel managed. He opened the door, slipped around it, and slammed it shut. He was halfway down the spiral staircase before he remembered the lock. A quick gesture sent the sound of the deadbolt’s click down the stairs.

Two floors down, Darcel’s heart was still racing. He cut across a hall and hurried into the quiet of an empty guest room. A familiar bed welcomed him. He sunk into it, took a deep breath, and relished the scents in the pillow that took him back to childhood. Zelda’s young smile warmed him; the memory of her embrace lulled him to sleep.

“…pretty blue eyes and you think what? _What?_ That he’s here to…”

Darcel’s eyes snapped open. He took in the room around him, putting the pieces of his day together until he remembered the full picture. He pushed himself out of bed, blushing self-consciously over the thoughts that had led him to the room. He was at the door when he remembered a voice had woken him. The voice was still in the hall, a bit farther away already. Darcel eased the door open and stuck his head out.

It was Vaati, and he was nearly at the end of the hall. His arms were folded against the wall, and he had his head bowed between them. It was a stance that spoke of tiredness. Or irritation. 

“Years of silence,” Vaati said. Darcel was halfway back into the room when he realized the Wind Mage wasn’t speaking to him. _“Decades_ of silence, and now you start acting up. Did you ever consider the fact that I don’t want to hear your delirious rambles? No, of course not. As ill-mannered as ever.” A pause, and Darcel watched hints of Vaati’s eyes narrow behind the curtain of his hanging hair. “He is _not_ a hero! He won’t have the chance to be! I’ll make sure of it.” Another pause. “Shut up. Go back to your mad sleep. I’m not talking to you about this anymore.”

_He really is insane,_ Darcel thought. He decided it was smart to make a quiet escape. He inched out of the guest room, using every thieving skill he had to move in silence. 

It wasn’t enough. Vaati’s head snapped up, and his eyes fixed on Darcel. There was a slight, crazed light in them. It was extinguished by anger, and the Wind Mage strolled up to Darcel on quick feet. “What are you doing?” Vaati asked once he was close enough. 

“I was sleeping,” Darcel explained. He tossed a thumb at the door behind him. “I fell asleep in there, and I just woke up.” 

“You were _eavesdropping,_ you little--” Vaati cut himself off. His hand, reaching for Darcel’s neck, stopped before the Hylian’s chest, above the heart. Darcel held his breath, not wanting his shirt to accidently touch the pointed nails. 

Vaati’s eyes snapped up to the ceiling. Darcel kept his eyes down and waited. He saw Vaati’s upraised hand stutter against the air. “Go to your room,” the Wind Mage told Darcel. “Don’t leave it until I give the all clear. The last thing we need is for you to defect.” 

“What are you talking about?” Darcel asked.

Vaati dropped his eyes and smiled. “Someone very familiar has decided to visit us.”

“Who--” Darcel stopped, and his eyes darkened. He opened his mouth, but Vaati stopped him with an upraised finger.

“To your room,” the Wind Mage repeated. “I’ll take care of him.”

The argument was clear in Darcel’s body from his clenched fists to the tightening of his face. No further words left his lips, however, and he walked away, his movements stiff with suppressed anger.

#

The house barely stirred, packed as it was with sleeping bodies. Soft snores were the loudest disturbances. Occasionally a hand shifted, either to scratch a nose or draw a loved one closer. The air was warm with body heat, though open windows kept it fresh with permitted breezes. 

With boots in hand, Link tip-toed between the sleeping refugees, willing each foot to fall silently on the blankets instead of on a splayed hand or a rack of ribs. He could only imagine the kind of uproar that would rise should he be caught sneaking out of Impa’s house. The people were already on edge due to Ganondorf’s visit earlier in the day. The Gerudo had spoken for a quarter-hour, outlining procedures for what he hoped would be ‘a peaceful transition of power’. Not even Impa had dared to speak anymore while Ganondorf dictated plans. Yet once he was gone, she had plenty to say to the villagers. Everyone agreed with her to _not_ agree with Ganondorf’s demands.

Passive rebellion wasn’t enough for Link. He needed to take a more forward role in freeing Zelda; knowing she was imprisoned ate away at him. Link also needed to speak to Darcel about where the Hylian’s loyalties truly laid. He hoped Darcel’s actions were merely a deception to undermine Ganondorf’s plans from the inside. The possibility that it wasn’t a ploy weighed on Link. It was his fault if Darcel truly had taken a turn for the worse. It meant Link failed to protect and guide him. Darcel wouldn’t have turned if he had a stronger brother at his side.

Impa’s front door was kept well oiled; no creak gave Link’s exit away. He slipped out into the sleeping village, closed the door behind him, and took a seat on the grass to put on his boots. He was finishing the adjustments of his foot in the second boot when a shadow blocked out the moonlight over him. Link looked up, his stomach sinking, and found Impa standing behind him with her arms crossed. Link stood up, turned around, and took two steps back to better face the Sheikah. 

Impa was a long while in speaking. Link was wise enough not to press her. He flinched when she asked, “Where are you going?”

Link tapped his right toe against the ground, and his boot settled more comfortably. “You know,” he said in a low voice.

Impa shook her head. “You’ll die.”

Link frowned at the ground. “We’ll see.”

“Link, you’ve had no formal training in any kind of defensive or offensive skills. You’ve never even hit anyone--”

_“I need to do this!”_ Link’s interruption was loud and sharp. It surprised even him. He took a step back and ducked his head again, which had risen at the shout. “I need to do this,” Link repeated in a softer voice. “It’s my fault Darcel is on the wrong side. It’s my fault Zelda is a prisoner. If I hadn’t been late, you would have been at her side, protecting her, instead of out looking for me.” 

The front door of Impa’s house opened, and a tired face peeked out. “Impa?” The man looked between the Sheikah and Link. “Everything all right?”

“Fine,” Impa replied, nodding. “Link was just a little enthusiastic. Go back to sleep. There’s no danger.”

The man shot a dark look at Link before retreating back into the house and closing the door. Link frowned and rubbed at the grass with the toe of his boot. “Great. Another reason for them to hate me,” he muttered.

“They don’t hate you, Link,” Impa said, sounding exasperated.

“Yes they do. I was a favorite of the princess living a comfy life in the castle. Now I’m safe and she’s not.” Link folded his arms tight against his chest. “Doesn’t matter. I’m going to save her, and then they’ll see.”

“See what?” Impa asked. “Your coffin? I’m sure a senseless sacrifice will impress them.”

Link huffed and frowned deeper. He shot a look around his surroundings to avoid Impa’s steady eyes, and his blue gaze latched onto a coil of rope hanging on a fence post. He walked over to the rope and plucked it up. “I can use this.” Link knotted the rope and swung the formed loop up to twirl it above his head. Impa raised her steel-gray eyebrows at the show. The stern look died into a laugh when Link flung the lasso over her and yanked the knot tight, binding her arms to her sides.

“A rope.” Impa shook her head as Link walked forward to loosen the lasso. It dropped to the ground, and Impa stepped out of its circle. “Link, please wait,” the Sheikah implored. “Wait a few weeks for Ganondorf to grow complacent. I have friends around the kingdom. We can work together--” Impa stopped when Link shook his head, and in a sharper voice she said, “Then we’ll go together, if you insist on being so foolish!” 

“No, you’re needed here,” Link said. “Someone has to protect the village in case Ganondorf comes calling again.” Link finished looping the rope and bound it to his belt. “I’m doing this, Impa. If you try to stop me, I’ll have to fight you.”

“You’ll lose,” Impa said, and a small, pitying chuckle shook her shoulders. She closed the distance to Link and took hold of his chin in her hand. He tensed at the touch, but it was a reflex. His neck remained loose as Impa turned his head from left to right and back again. She studied the bags under his eyes, the lines of strain in his brow, and the impatience in his limbs. She also took in the quiet of the night around her and Link, with its soft chirrups and cool touch; a false peace, but it was all Hyrule had for now. The Hylian in front of her wanted to do his best to change that.

Impa dropped her hand and put some space between her and Link again. “Don’t let this be the last time I see you alive, all right?”

Link’s weary face split into a grin. “Okay,” he promised with a nod.

“You’re a good lad,” Impa praised. “And ceremony or not, you’re a man now, Link. Zelda is expecting you to act like one.”

“I’ll do my absolute best,” Link vowed.

“Do better than that,” Impa said with a slight raise of her eyebrows. Link nodded and, seemingly on impulse, moved forward to embrace the Sheikah. She was surprised, but touched, and she ruffled his blonde locks before pushing him along on his way. “Go if you’re going,” Impa said, her voice tight. “And good luck.”

#

Over the immeasurable amount of time Link and Darcel spent in the castle, Zelda had taught them secret ins and outs, many of which not even the soldiers were aware. There was more than one way past the gate leading onto the castle grounds, and Link found it easy to sneak past the ruined gatehouse. The grief, however, was harder to handle. Every ruined stone or torn-up path reminded him of what was lost. Yet it encouraged him at the same time to do his best in hope that saving Zelda would be the first step toward Hyrule’s revival. Zelda and Impa would lead the crusade to take back the kingdom, and all of the hardship and losses wouldn’t be for vain.

The moon’s light guided Link across the desolate front gardens to a familiar storm drain on the castle’s east side. A jump across the moat--once a wide impasse to a ten-year-old--was an easy hop. The narrow drain was the bigger challenge for Link’s further developed body. He sucked in his chest and tucked his shoulders to wiggle through the drain, letting the slick algae on its walls ease his journey. The drain stank of damp, and left his clothes half-soaked when he emerged into the inner gardens. There, Link took a minute to expand his squeezed lungs with deep breaths, and shake out the cramp in his back. Somewhat relieved, he headed for the central courtyard.

Once, it was a game for Link, Darcel, and Zelda to slip unseen by the patrolling guards in the gardens. Their laughter had often given them away, leading to chases that the guards always lost. Now there was only stillness and a dreary air that bred silence. Link encountered a guard, however, and he dropped to one knee before the late man. He kept his eyes down so as to avoid picking out familiar features behind the crooked, bloodstained visor. The smell was terrible, yet he endured it to offer a soft prayer. Finished, he made to stand only to freeze in the midst of the act when a sound broke the heavy silence of the gardens.

It was the hoot of an owl. Link released the breath he had subconsciously held and straightened fully onto his feet to continue along his way.

Link soon came to the central courtyard that was another haven for him, his brother, and the princess. The flowers that were once prominent were now wilting, and weeds were growing at a startling rate to take their places. Whatever ill air Ganondorf and his minions were exuding was spreading fast. Link crossed the courtyard, avoiding the wilting flowers as much as he could, and came to a waist-high window set into one side of the surrounding wall. 

The window looked into the late King Daphne’s receiving room. This was the riskiest part of Link’s infiltration. He had no idea if an enemy or Ganondorf himself lay within the room, the bulk of which was blocked from view by the thick-walled alcove surrounding the window. But the chance had to be taken. Link slipped the window up and ducked through it. He closed the window behind him and pressed against the side of the alcove to better scope out the rest of the room without exposing himself.

The room was empty--a small blessing, Link thought at first, until he remembered he needed some clue to Zelda’s location. Even with his memory full of shortcuts and hidden rooms, there was no telling how long it would take him to find Zelda. And there was also Darcel to locate. The princess, however, was the first priority. 

_I need someone who will cave in and give me the information I need,_ Link thought. He crossed the room and took a turn into a hall, determined to find such a source. 

Link had worked his way up to the top floor of the east wing when he encountered a lone stalfos patrolling a corridor. The creature’s back was to Link, and the Hylian was able to approach undetected to ensure a snag with his lasso. With an easy toss and a hard yank, Link had the knotted hoop tight around the stalfos’s neck. The creature fell backward to the floor with a rattling, indignant cry.

“Quiet!” Link snapped in as commanding a voice as he could manage. The stalfos fell silent in surprise to find a young man glaring down at him. “Princess Zelda,” Link prompted. “Where is she being held? Tell me!” He yanked on the rope to encourage the creature.

The stalfos gargled, and his bony mouth shifted around barely-passable Hylian. “Tower.”

“Tower?” Link repeated. Hyrule Castle had four main towers, one in each intermediate compass direction. “Which tower?”

The stalfos’s shoulder bones shifted in a shrug. Link cursed his luck, but in truth this knowledge was fortunate. His hunt would be much easier now with only four possible locations to search. He could manage it before the moon reached its zenith, leaving plenty of nighttime cover for his and Zelda’s escape. Darcel would have to wait longer; once the princess was secure, it was vital to get her to safety first.

Before that, the stalfos needed to be put out of commission. It was already reaching for the flamberge it had dropped upon being lassoed. Link kicked the blade out of the creature’s reach, and fell to hogtieing its bony wrists and ankles together. He rolled the bound stalfos into a room where it would less likely be found. With the door closed on the protesting creature, Link was able to take a quiet moment to think on a search plan. 

The northeast tower was closest to his current position, leaving the first step easy. If Zelda wasn’t there, he would continue in a clockwise direction until he found the tower where she was imprisoned. Link nodded, satisfied with his reasoning, and set out for the first tower. After a few steps, he doubled back and picked up the stalfos’s fallen flamberge. The blade felt heavy and awkward in Link’s hands, yet with the rope already sacrificed it was his only option if he wanted any chance against future enemies.

Link was close to the first tower when he encountered his second stalfos. He turned a corner and nearly ran into the creature. It wasn’t as oblivious as its fellow was, and it was quicker. The bite of a flamberge sunk deep into Link’s right shoulder before he could as much as cry out.

Link’s arm went dead below the wound. His fingers still clutched the flamberge, but he couldn’t feel them or the blade’s hard hilt, and his arm didn’t respond to any commands to move. The entire limb was heavy with numbness. 

Link jumped out of range of the stalfos’s second slash. His left hand freed the flamberge from his dead fingers. Blood coursed down his injured arm and dropped to the floor. The pain was negligible, finding few routes along the unresponsive nerves. Link was able to put it aside in order to retaliate against the stalfos. With the flamberge in his left hand he was far clumsier, yet he was lucky. His blade decapitated the stalfos when it opened itself to an attack by raising both arms for a powerful blow. The skull rolled away down the hall, and the rest of the creature collapsed into a pile of bones.

Link pressed his back against the wall and worked to calm his quickened heart and lungs. He wagered his minimal luck was about to run out. No feeling was returning to his right arm, and the wound was bleeding freely. He was forced to abandon the flamberge in order to clamp his free hand over the gash. 

A cold gust of wind rocked down the hall, rattling windows and toppling suits of armor. Link followed his first instinct to seek shelter from the unnatural wind. He recognized a linen closet down the hall and ducked into the small space. The door fought with the wind when Link attempted to close it one-handed; there was a rip of wood as the hinges were strained. When the doorjamb clicked into place, Link almost laughed with relief.

The roar of the wind in the hall died in an instant. Link moved to the edge of the door. The loosened hinges had opened a space between the door and its frame, allowing him a sliver of space through which to study the hall. A purple-clad figure walked into the corridor as if from out of thin air.

“I smell blood,” Vaati remarked in an unperturbed voice. 

In the linen closet, Link took only quiet, shallow breaths, remembering Vaati was a Wind Mage.

Vaati scanned the hall and took in the buckled stalfos with mild surprise. “Well well, what happened to you?” The Wind Mage spied the abandoned flamberge next. “Did that end you? Ah, the blood…” One of Vaati’s long-nailed fingers blotted up a sample of Link’s blood from the floor. The Wind Mage sucked the digit into his mouth and pronounced, “Hylian.”

Link stood tense in the linen closet, surrounded by the smell of clean cotton and the stink of his fear. He could feel fresh blood slipping over the hand braced against his wound. If Vaati could smell it… Or if there was a trail leading to the closet…

Yet instead of seeking the blood’s source out, Vaati picked up the flamberge. He studied it as if it was rarer than the common weapon it was, and an amused light came to his red eyes. A small, ominous laugh left him, and he walked away with the blade in hand.

Link emerged from the closet only when he was sure the hall was empty. _I have to find Zelda fast,_ he thought while his mind reeled from the close call. He took a few steps in the direction of the tower, and his head swam with dizziness. He fell against the wall and closed his eyes until the feelings of nausea and lightheadedness eased. They never completely left him, making his trek to the tower a slower one than he liked. Blood got around his clamped hand to pockmark his trail through the castle.

Link reached the tower staircase without any further incidents. Here his eagerness overrode the weakness of his body, and he hurried up the stairs at a quick clip. His feet moved faster and faster as he continuously looked up and ahead, willing a door to appear. Finally, after one last bend, it did. And it was partially open, no less. Could it be…?

Link pushed open the heavy door. It hit the adjoining hall and rebounded with a dull bang. The tower room Link now found himself in was plain in décor and had a single window. Someone stood at the window, leaning on the wide sill and studying the night through a haze of cigarette smoke.

“Darcel?” Relief flooded Link. He forgot about his wound and fatigue. 

Darcel had whirled around at the sound of the banging door. His eyes betrayed his surprise at Link’s arrival. The two young men regarded each other over a lengthy silence.

Link worked to recover the breath that was becoming harder to keep. He took a step forward and reached out with his bloodied left hand in an inviting gesture. “Darcel, let’s get out--”

Link caught the shift in Darcel’s eyes too late. He was still voicing his plea when his ears twitched at the sound of a sword cutting through the air behind him.

A sudden, sharp pain hit Link’s chest. His words died in a gasp that was cut off when a pale hand clamped over his mouth. A dark chuckle sounded in Link’s ear, and the pain increased. He was tugged backward until his back hit a thin chest, and the pain spiked the sharpest yet. 

Link’s outstretched arm shuddered with a spasm and dropped to where the agony was worst. The fingers encountered the waved blade of a flamberge. It cut the air directly before Link, and it was smeared with blood. It took Link several seconds to realize the blade protruded from the middle of his torso.

Darcel’s eyes were wide. He didn’t move or speak, and neither did Link. The impaled Hylian’s breaths came out hard and fast through his nose. The scream in his throat escaped only as a muffled whimper from behind the hand over his mouth.

Link’s attacker laughed again at the sound, and the fingernails of his clamped hand dug into Link’s right cheek. “Hush, child,” the darkly amused voice whispered. The tone shifted, dropping into a hard, authoritative demand. “Darcel, move away from the window so that I may dispose of our uninvited guest.”

Darcel tossed his cigarette and did as he was told, keeping to the edges of the room. The flamberge’s crossguard pressed into Link’s back, and he shut his eyes against welling tears of pain. They fell anyway, trialing down his cheeks and over the hand that muted him.

“Poor child,” the dark voice whispered in mock pity. “Walk, little Hylian. That’s a good boy…”

Stiff-legged, Link cross the room as if he was a puppet on taut wires. His attacker nudged him along with gentle pressure on the sword until Link reached the open window. His shirt was heavy with warm blood, and his head swam in and out of darkness. He had a strong desire to close his eyes and sleep. Yet every time his eyes fluttered closed, a sharp push or pull on the flamberge was enough to snap him back to painful wakefulness. When the hand finally dropped from his mouth, Link could no longer voice the scream that wanted to escape him moments ago.

“Your hero playtime is over,” hissed the voice behind Link.

The flamberge was withdrawn with agonizing slowness, and Link’s scream finally found initiative to leave him. It quickly trickled off to die in a pathetic whimper. Rough hands spun him around, and he looked into his attacker’s face through a thickening veil of black, although he had recognized the voice from the first hiss of malice.

A single red eye looked back at Link almost curiously, as if the Hylian was a specimen of an interesting breed. The hair obscuring the other eye was swept aside with a toss of the head. A dazzling smile lit up the pale face, showing off sharp incisors.

“It’s time to say goodbye, false hero,” Vaati said in a voice could almost be one of sorrow if a hint of laughter didn’t edge it.

“No…” Link reached out toward the brother he could distantly see, as if Darcel was at the end of a dark tunnel. “Darcel, please…”

Vaati’s eyes lost their curiosity, and his smile dropped. He looked at the fact that Link could manage anything coherent. He also looked annoyed. A sharp tooth worried at his bottom lip as he contemplated on some hidden knowledge. The reemergence of his grin was sudden. “Darcel,” the Wind Mage called, cordially, “your brother has something to say to you. It will be the last thing he ever says.”

Darcel’s reply was final. “I have no brother.” 

“Oh, that’s too bad,” Vaati remarked, more to Link than anyone else. He reached out and braced a hand against Link’s blood-soaked shirt to push the Hylian out the window. 

Link collected the last of his waning strength and clamped his good hand down over Vaati’s. In response, the Wind Mage tugged him forward instead of back and pressed his forehead against Link’s. At such a close interval, Link could pick out the tension in Vaati’s face even through his pain-wracked focus. The Wind Mage looked to be holding something back beneath his cheerfully malevolent façade. 

“It’s okay,” Vaati whispered. “Really, it’s fine. If you don’t drown in the moat, the wound will kill you in short time. Just let it go, child. It’s easier to slip down and let death take you than it is to fight the whole way.”

“I… Darcel--” Link coughed and felt something shift the wrong way in his chest. 

“Shhh, shhh.” Vaati pushed again. Link felt his boot heels hit the wall below the windowsill. “It’s all right. That’s a good boy--”

Link couldn’t remember when his hand slipped away from Vaati, or when his body tipped through the tower window. He only remembered falling for what felt like years. The impact of hitting the water ripped new pain through his body. He instinctively sucked in a breath to scream, and cold water rushed into his lungs. Link struggled against the moat’s current as it swept him toward a drain in the curtain wall. His panicked, pain-impaired mind found enemies swarming around him in the murky water. He swatted at them, and the water darkened with his blood. 

Complete blackness fell over Link. He was in the drain, being swept out to the Zora River. Link felt his consciousness leaving him. It took every worry and ache with it. He sunk into the water’s cold grip and…

#

The horse snorted, and her rider raised his head in response. With a small whinny and a second snort, the mare tossed her head. Her black mane swept through the air and dislodged the small flowers that were braided into it by the Kokiri.

The man rose to his feet and soothed the horse before he looked around for the source of her agitation. Beyond the orange glow of his fire, he could see very little. The land had taken on an unnatural pall since the abrupt coup days earlier. Here, close to the castle at night, that pall was at its darkest. Strange creatures accompanied the night with a haunting melody.

And yet, not far from the white curtain wall, there was a pale blue orb circling the portion of the Zora River that flowed from Castle Town. Curious, the man left the safety of his fire’s light and approached the orb. He realized before long it was moving with the river’s current. When he grew close enough, he was able to see that the orb was a fairy.

“It’s rare to see one of you nowadays, let along this close to the tainted castle,” the man remarked, speaking to the fairy. He looked down to see what the fairy was keeping pace with, and his gut jerked. In a moment he dropped to his knees on the river’s soft bank and fished a floating body out of the water.

It was a young, male Hylian, surely no older than eighteen. His chest was punctured by a stab wound, and there was a deep cut in his right shoulder. Yet he was breathing--shallowly, wetly, but surely. Even when the young man was secure in his rescuer’s arms, the fairy continued to circle above, raining weak sparkles of fairy magic over him.

“Keep him alive,” the man said to the fairy. He straightened up with the young Hylian in his arms. “It’s unfair of me to ask this of you,” the man continued, having noticed the fairy’s pale color. “I understand you’re weak, but keep him alive long enough until I get him to the Kokiri. Can you do that?”

The fairy agreed with a quick bob in the air and followed the man back to his camp. There, he banked his fire and hoisted himself and the young man into his horse’s saddle. “Ride, Daze,” the man ordered. At her rider’s command, the mare took off toward the distant woods. The fairy settled atop the young man’s chest before she could be left behind.


	8. The Left-Handed Hero

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In the wake of Link's unsuccessful rescue attempt, Zelda is forced to open the way to the Triforce, and she and Ganondorf both try to claim it for themselves. But the Goddesses have other ideas, and across the kingdom a young hero stirs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!
> 
> This chapter introduces a character that is both a cameo and somewhat of an OC--that is, I had to create a personality for them. 
> 
> I hope you enjoy, thank you! Feedback is awesome and appreciated!

# In the Shade of a Hero

### The Left-Handed Hero

Vaati leaned out the window to mark the splash when Link hit the moat far below. The Hylian’s body sunk under the water, leaving red bubbles in its wake. Vaati pulled his head in, shut the window, and turned to Darcel. “All clear,” the Wind Mage pronounced with a smile. Seeing the strain in Darcel’s face, he asked, “What’s wrong, child? You look pale. Having second thoughts?” Darcel shook his head. “Good, because doubters are no good to our cause, and they’ll meet the same sad end as your brother just did.”

Darcel nodded again, swallowed, and asked in a small voice, “Is he really dead?”

“Oh yes.” Vaati’s eyes widened along with his smile. “He was nearly at death’s door when he fell. Before morning, his corpse will wash up at Lake Hylia and become nothing more than guay food. Now get some rest, child. I’m sure Ganondorf wants you at your best. We still need the information about the Triforce weaseled out of the princess.”

Vaati left, taking the bloodied flamberge with him. Darcel hung close by the wall until the Wind Mage’s footsteps had died on the spiral stairs. Once he was alone, he walked to the window in an air of unease and opened it again. 

There was no hint of Link along the length of the moat that could be seen from the window. Only the moonlight flashed across the water, winking in and out. Darcel drew back and closed the window. He went to bed with his mind heavy with deep thoughts.

A floor down, Vaati leaned against a wall and fell to licking Link’s blood off of the flamberge. He took his time, as he could see the last hour or so of Link's memories with each sample. He found a grim delight in taking in these last moments. He was still relishing them when Ganondorf came across him half an hour later.

“Something’s wrong,” Ganondorf said as a way of greeting. “Something’s wrong with the castle.”

Vaati spared him a sidelong glance, and his tongue licked off the last of Link’s blood. “Was,” he corrected after drawing in the tongue. Ganondorf watched him with an expression between disgust and puzzlement. “I fixed it. I told you he would come. You must have a swift and decisive hand with these hero-types. Believe me, I learned that mistake when I was still new to this body.”

Link’s last memory was jolted out of Vaati’s head when Ganondorf seized his collar and pulled him away from the wall. “You killed Link?” he asked.

“The bleeding out and drowning in the moat killed him,” Vaati replied. “I just helped the process along by sticking a sword through him.” He saw both fear and anger warp Ganondorf’s face, and he cooled it by adding, “You granted me permission, remember?”

Ganondorf jerked as if stung, and his fingers loosened. Vaati pulled his collar out of them and took two steps back. “Cheer up,” he said to the conflicted Gerudo. “We have one less problem, and you still have the other child to dote upon. I did us all a favor. You should be thanking me for doing what you wouldn’t.” He waited for such thanks, but it never came, and with a sneer Vaati turned away with a flicker of wind in his cape.

Ganondorf punched the wall with a roar of rage. He felt and heard a finger snap, but ignored it in favor of the simmering anger that blocked out all input from the world. He was supposed to twist this world into his image, so how were things getting away from him so easily? Ganondorf pressed his forehead against the wall and dropped his injured hand to his side. 

_Ganondorf,_ Koume’s voice cooed. _It’s all right, Ganondorf. Things will get better._

_Yes, yes!_ Kotake agreed. _As soon as you have the Triforce, you can_ make _it better._

_You can have everything you ever wanted._

_And you’ll have the power to be rid of that Wind Mage._

Ganondorf lifted his right hand and stretched out his fingers. The index finger complained with a fresh jolt of pain. Ganondorf clenched his fingers shut again and turned into the empty halls of the castle.

#

The rider pulled short his horse to a quick stop inside the entrance to the Kokiri Forest. Nestled amongst--and in some cases within--the trees were numerous houses where the child-like race made their homes. At the moment, the entire village was quiet in sleep, and no light shined in any of the windows. Even used to the quiet as he was, the rider couldn’t shake the feeling that something watched him from the gloom.

Putting aside this usual uneasiness, the rider slid off of his horse with the injured young man in his arms. He set out for a familiar home amongst the trees; the blue-white fairy trailed him. The young man was still breathing, but the breaths had grown more labored during the ride; at any moment they could cease altogether. No hint of consciousness had touched his face either.

The rider hammered on the front door of his destination with a booted foot. After a quarter-minute that felt like an eternity, a small, green-haired Kokiri girl answered the door. 

“Yes? Oh, it’s you, Shade.” Reasonably, the Kokiri girl was surprised to have a visitor at such a late hour.

The man called Shade gestured with his full arms. The Kokiri girl took in the young Hylian with a sudden widening of her green eyes. “Saria, I found him floating down the river from the castle. He’s been wounded gravely, and he’s fading. This fairy has kept him alive…” Shade looked up to indicate the fairy hovering over him. “…but her magic is nearly used up.”

“Bring him in here,” Saria ordered, and she stepped aside to allow Shade entry.

The taller man had to duck his head in order to fit through the door. Once he was inside the house, he was able to stand at his full height under the high ceiling. Saria quickly set to work laying out straw mats and a blanket for the wounded young man, as her bed was far too small to accommodate him. Shade was ordered to fetch various things from around the house while Saria assessed the young man’s wounds. Once she was fittingly supplied, the Kokiri girl started her work. 

Shade retreated to the edge of the room in order to take a seat on the floor along the wall. There was no threat of him nodding off to sleep. Even so, he closed his eyes so that he could shut off the world and think upon all that had happened in the last short hour or so. He opened them again when he sensed Saria standing over him. The Kokiri girl’s hands shined, freshly cleaned of the blood they had collected during her half-hour’s work.

“I made him comfortable,” Saria explained when Shade cast up a silent look of question. “But I can’t save him. The chest wound is grave, and it’s refusing to respond to even my deepest forest magic. Someone with an evil will attacked this young man. He won’t last the night.”

Shade looked down and past Saria to where the young man was laid out. The young man’s breaths came in short, hitching bursts with too much time between them. Bandages were wrapped around his shoulder and chest, and already they were darkening with blood. 

“I’ll stand watch over him,” Shade volunteered. “Saria, go to Mido’s home for the rest of the night. There’s no need for you to stay and lose sleep. Thank you for everything you were able to do.”

Saria shook her head and wrung her clean hands. “I only wish it had been enough.” She took a few minutes to collect some things in a cloth bag before bidding Shade a good night. After she left, Shade sighed, settled against the wall, and fixed his eyes on the young man to mark his last hours in the world.

#

Rough hands shook Darcel awake, dragging him out of dreams filled with endless horizons and mist. The face that swam into focus in the moonlight was dark and strained. Darcel blinked, and the rest of Ganondorf’s features fell into place. 

“I can’t wait any longer,” Ganondorf said to Darcel. His eyes were bloated, almost as if he had only finished crying. “I need the Triforce. I need a way to get rid of that dangerous Wind Mage.” Ganondorf bowed his head and dropped his arms from Darcel’s shoulders. The Hylian rubbed sleep from his red eyes. “I was a fool for hoping Vaati would keep his hunger for blood in check, and for thinking Link wouldn’t come after Zelda” The Gerudo raised his hands to his face. “Darcel, get dressed. You need to tell… You need to _order_ the princess to tell us how to reach the Triforce. Tell her Link is dead, and others will suffer the same fate if she doesn’t reveal the secret.”

Half-asleep, Darcel had nodded in compliance. Now he stood in Zelda’s room, dressed and on edge. The past few hours kept coming back to thrust their details into his face and demand an emotional response. He pushed it all aside; buried it under rage and satisfaction. 

“Link is dead.” Saying the words brought a strange pleasure to Darcel. “He infiltrated the castle and was found by Vaati, who killed him.”

Zelda was sitting on the edge of her bed. Her hands dropped to the mattress at Darcel’s news, and her fingers clenched around it. “You’re lying.” This was said through tight lips.

“I’m not,” Darcel assured her. “A stalfos was found hogtied in a room. It said Link had asked for your location. He went to a tower looking for you and came upon my room by mistake. Vaati followed him, stabbed him, and pushed him out my window into the moat. No doubt his body is floating down to Lake Hylia by now.” 

Zelda closed her eyes and raised her chin. Darcel saw a glimmer of tears in the corners of her eyes. He wondered if she would ever cry for him if he died. 

The princess dropped her chin and wiped the tears from her eyes. “You woke me up just to tell me this?” she asked. Her eyes were furious when she looked to Darcel. “You’re loathsome.”

“That’s not it!” Darcel was quick to say, hotly. “Ganondorf doesn’t want to wait for you to decide to cooperate. He wants the Triforce, or other people will die. Impa’s probably next if you refuse to give him what he wants. So are you going to cooperate or not?”

Zelda thought fast, even as tears rolled down her cheeks. To reveal the way to the Triforce was dangerous… but it might be the only guaranteed way Zelda could save her kingdom. If she could manage to touch the Triforce before Ganondorf laid his hands on it, she could wish for her kingdom to be restored and Ganondorf banished. She could wish for a return of peace. 

She could wish for Link to be alive once more.

Zelda raised her head. “Fine,” she agreed. The word was heavy on her tongue. “The keys are in my family’s treasure vault. Take me there.”

#

The faintest hint of the oncoming morning was lightening the sky over the remains of Castle Town. Within the Temple of Time on the edge of the ruined town, torches provided firmer light. They glinted off of the Spiritual Stones that Darcel carefully laid on the altar before the Door of Time. These stones, along with the precious Ocarina of Time in Zelda’s hands, were the keys needed to open the path to the Triforce.

Zelda approached the altar, cradling the Ocarina of Time against her chest. Around her, Ganondorf and Darcel looked on. They had made a lucky break from the castle without Vaati’s notice--or rather, Ganondorf thought, the Wind Mage had noticed but simply hadn’t cared enough to follow. That possibility raised too many unsettling questions. 

The princess’s footsteps were loud in the cavernous temple. They echoed against her ears, each one an accusation. By helping an enemy of Hyrule, she was betraying the Goddesses; she was betraying her entire lineage. She reassured herself by remembering that it was, in the long run, for the good of her kingdom. With her father dead, she was Hyrule’s queen now, and she was the one who must make the decisions, good or bad.

Ganondorf ran a hand over his face and rubbed his brow. He hadn’t had much sleep this night, and his body was heavy with grief. “Sometime today, Princess Zelda.”

Zelda, stalled in front of the altar, jerked on her feet. She spared Ganondorf a lost look and refocused on her task. From the depths of her childhood memories she called up the song her mother had once taught her. It was one of the last times Zelda has spoken to her mother before sickness claimed the queen. It felt like such a long time ago; almost as if it had happened to someone else. Yet when she raised the Ocarina’s neck to her lips, the memory returned in vivid detail to move her fingers along the holes. The Song of Time’s notes echoed with startling clarity, and only when the last note faded did the sound of shifting stone take its place. 

The three gathered watched the Door of Time split apart to retreat into the thick walls of the temple. Before it on the altar, the Spiritual Stones had risen into the air to spin in place. In all, it was an ominous display. Ganondorf half-expected a guardian beast to force its way through the massive opening that the Door revealed. Instead, a new chamber was all that was on the other side. 

Ganondorf found himself moving into the chamber, although he couldn’t remember consciously deciding to do so. Zelda followed him, equally mesmerized. Darcel took up the rear, frowning. He couldn’t understand what was so fascinating about the chamber. It looked empty from where he was standing. 

Yet there was something within the revealed room: a sword of fine design, inscribed with the three sacred triangles of the Triforce. The sword stood blade down, embedded in a plinth that shared the Triforce marking. The plinth was further set atop a wide, angular dais that took up most of the room. This latter was marked by six different circular symbols arranged in a larger circle around the plinth. Stained glass windows high above cast colorful sunlight into the chamber despite the fact that it was still early dawn outside the Temple of Time. 

Zelda frowned as she took in the new chamber and its minimal contents. She couldn’t remember this part of the legend that was passed down from her parents. Was there something about a sword…? It was no use; the memory wouldn’t come, though the details played at the edges of Zelda’s mind. As a child, she was far more interested in the legend of the powerful Goddesses than a simple sword.

Seeing the sword, Ganondorf hesitated. His yellow eyes marked its flawless design and hard gleam before they swept up to take in the rest of the chamber. “That blade…” The Gerudo paused, and Zelda turned a look of slight question onto him. “It must have something to do with guarding the Triforce. Pull it out.”

“Do it yourself,” Zelda replied in a cold voice. “I’ve done my part.”

Ganondorf glared at her and pointed a shaking finger at the sword. “It’s emblazoned with the mark of the Triforce--the same Triforce on the Royal Family’s crest. You are the last member of that Royal Family. _Now pull out that sword!”_

Zelda flinched at the shout. Part of her wanted to keep denying Ganondorf. Another part reminded her that the Gerudo was likely right; if she wanted the Triforce, she had to pull out the sword. She pocketed the Ocarina of Time and stepped up onto the dais. She crossed it to the sword under the watchful eyes of both Ganondorf and Darcel. The latter hadn’t said anything so far. He had dutifully followed Zelda’s instructions on the placement of the Spiritual Stones before slipping into the shadows of the temple as if he wasn’t there. Even now Zelda wasn’t sure where Darcel was, although she sensed he was out of sight just beyond the corner of her eye.

Zelda put her thoughts out of mind and took up a position behind the plinth. When she wrapped her hands around the embedded sword’s hilt, she felt certainty spread through her, traveling along her fingers and up her arms to warm her body. Yes, she could pull out this blade with no difficulty… but what would happen once it was freed from its plinth? This question worried Zelda for, along with the confidence, there was something else in the sword’s power. It was a subtle malice. Not for her, but rather…

Zelda glanced at Ganondorf, standing by the edge of the dais with one foot atop it. Looking at him and seeing the wariness in his eyes, Zelda remembered a snatch of a line from the legend of the Triforce.

_...evil’s bane…_

What _was_ it nagging at her? A warning or a reminder…

“Is everything all right?”

Zelda jerked her head around, barely suppressing a cry of surprise. It was only Darcel, to her right. He was a few feet away from the dais’s edge, but his voice had sounded as if he was whispering into her ear. Zelda offered him a brief glare before she turned back to the sword and tightened her grip.

The blade rose out of the plinth with clean ease. However, the point was no sooner free of the stone did the entire sword drop with such sudden power that Zelda was nearly dragged down. She yelped, but maintained her hold, keeping the hilt a few inches off of the ground. “Help me!” she called to both Ganondorf and Darcel. Neither of them approached her. They looked almost afraid.

It wasn’t a matter of the sword’s weight that kept Zelda bent over and struggling. There was a feeling of many hands pushing down on the blade in an attempt to free it from her grip. _Let it go,_ more than one voice whispered in Zelda’s head, and she realized the truth of the moment: as a member of the Royal Family she could free the sword, but she wasn’t meant to wield it.

As Zelda struggled, the room took on a blue glow that grew brighter by the second. It had gone by Zelda’s notice at first, but now she could see nothing but the glow. It enveloped her and the sword, cutting off her views of Ganondorf and Darcel. The glow solidified into thin columns of light, and in a flash the sword chamber fell away. Zelda blinked afterimages from her eyes and discovered she was surrounded by a perfect field of emerald grass under a sapphire sky and a ruby sun.

Zelda gasped, and her fingers slipped from the sword’s hilt. It dropped to the bright grass like a stone and vanished in its own flash of light. 

The sword was the least of Zelda’s concerns. Hovering above the field some distance away was a set of three golden triangles--the Triforce. The ancient relic exuded a brilliant light that both outmatched and embraced the flawless landscape surrounding it.

Ganondorf was running toward it.

Zelda took off after him, hiking up the gown she had hurriedly put on before leaving the castle. She had great speed for her size, but there wasn’t enough distance or time for her to surpass Ganondorf. She was still several yards away when the Gerudo pressed his dark palm against the Triforce.

The perfect landscape shattered into a vista of black. In three bursts of light, the Triforce was broken into its separate three parts. They spun off into the blackness and disappeared. 

The unseen ground beneath Zelda’s feet vanished, leaving her to fall into a black void. She saw a flash of Ganondorf falling as well before she lost sight of him in the darkness. She could see nothing, and heard only the roar of wind in her ears. Zelda flailed her arms, searching for some hold to stop her descent. 

What she found was another hand; one of infinite warmth. Zelda felt herself first slow, then stop. She looked up to see a hand as if carved from sapphire holding her with a gentle grip. A golden glow bloomed to life where the sapphire palm was pressed against the back of Zelda’s hand.

In the darkness some distance away, a hand grabbed Ganondorf as well. Looking as if it was carved from ruby, it took hold of his right hand in a powerful grip. Golden light burst from where the palm touched the back of Ganondorf’s hand, and his eyes slipped closed. 

He opened them again in the Temple of Time. He was steady on his feet and once more in front of the altar where the Spiritual Stones hovered. Ganondorf looked at the back of his right hand. The outline of the Triforce glimmered against his skin. Only the top portion was filled in with golden light.

Ganondorf felt… peculiar. He flexed the emblazoned hand, and a thrill of power shot up his arm. His broken finger cracked back together. He shivered and smiled, only to frown a second later. No, something wasn’t right.

Darcel was helping Zelda stay on her feet. The princess was unsteady and had no choice but to accept his aid. She felt as if a great weight was placed on her shoulders. She rotated them and straightened her spine. The weight slipped off some, allowing her to stand on her own. She pulled her body out of Darcel’s careful hands and put some distance between him and herself. Her eyes found the Triforce on the back of her right hand. The bottom-left portion was the brightest of the three triangles.

Ganondorf’s rough hand seized Zelda’s right wrist. At his touch the twin Triforce marks burned brighter, and a high ringing sound filled both of their ears. Ganondorf released Zelda’s hand and backed away. “It split?”

Zelda rubbed at her wrist. Her look was smug. “Should one who does not have his or her heart in balance touch the Triforce, it will split with the piece best suited for that person left behind.” Zelda dropped both hands and looked Ganondorf straight in the eye. “If you want to obtain the true Triforce, Ganondorf, you’ll have to gather its three pieces together. Prove you have the power, wisdom, and courage to do so and your desires will be fulfilled.” She didn’t need to add, _Good luck with that._ It was in her tone.

Ganondorf scowled at the princess’s haughty airs. Even so… “I already have two pieces, don’t I?” he reminded her. “Din left her power with me, and since you don’t come across as the courageous type I assume Nayru gave you her wisdom?”

“I’m far more courageous than a backstabbing fool like you,” Zelda snapped back.

Ganondorf ignored the insult and looked to Darcel. “That leaves courage.”

The young Hylian shook his head. “Don’t look at me. I watched you two disappear in the blue light. I came in here to look for you, and you reappeared out of thin air.”

“Too bad,” Zelda remarked, a smile betraying her false sincerity.

Ganondorf’s hand moved before he knew her remark had angered him. The backhand fell hard against Zelda’s cheek, shining with the Triforce of Power, and the princess staggered backwards. Darcel caught her before she could fall over her tangled feet. 

_What just happened?_ Ganondorf’s mind snapped back to full focus. He had moved without thought. No. The Triforce had moved him. He looked again at the back of his hand. The mark there was gone, but he could still feel it. It pumped its power into his arm; into his whole body. It rushed his head with voices and images. He felt a strong desire to start punching a wall and never stop. He also realized he could raise an army to do it for him with just a push of this new power.

_Do it do it do it do_ The Triforce’s voice nearly overwhelmed Ganondorf. He closed his eyes and focused on trying to block it out. He had to learn this technique when he first came into his magic. It was just a matter of finding that inner strength again. If only he had a quiet place to…

Once Zelda was steady, Darcel drew the sword he had brought with him and advanced toward Ganondorf, a dangerous light in his eyes. “I’ll kill you for hurting her!” he shouted.

“No, stop it!” Zelda screamed. 

The outside voices clashed with the inside. With a scream of frustration, Ganondorf dropped out of his concentration and acted instinctively on the threat. His right hand unleashed a blast of black energy that hit Darcel in the gut and sent him flying. The Hylian struck the far wall and dropped to the floor; his sword skittered out of reach. 

“Darcel!” Zelda hurried to her once-friend and dropped to her knees beside him. She shushed his whimper of pain and encouraged him to unfold his curled body so that she could feel for broken bones. “You’re okay, you’re okay,” Zelda repeatedly assured him. She stopped when a shadow fell over her; Darcel’s eyes widened, and he shrunk further against the wall.

“I will find that last piece,” Ganondorf growled when Zelda and Darcel looked up at him. He stood tall, surrounded by a low, dark aura. The Triforce on the back of his hand sparked golden light up his arm. His face struggled between calm and rage. “I _will_ have it. And whoever is the one who holds it, they will feel my wrath.”

#

A green light filled the Kokiri home where a young man lay dying. Shade saw it through his eyelids which had, against his will, fallen closed sometime in the last five minutes. He forced them up and looked across the room to see an unexpected sight. 

Knelt by the young man’s left side was a woman of stunning beauty with features carved out of what appeared to be emerald. While Shade looked on, the woman leaned down and pressed a kiss to the young man’s pallid brow. At her touch, some color returned to his skin, and he took a deep, easy breath as if in the midst of a peaceful sleep. The calm breathing continued with no hint of the difficulty the young man had struggled with earlier.

While the young man breathed, the woman took up his left hand between her emerald palms. There was a flash of gold at the touch. The woman lowered the hand and stood up. Her eyes found Shade.

Shade stood up with difficulty; his legs were trembling. He pressed his back against the wall and shook his head in jerking motions. “No, it’s too soon. He’s still only a child.”

The woman smiled at Shade as if she was amused by him. When she replied, it wasn’t with a voice. Instead, images filled Shade’s head, and their shapes suggested the words. _He is eighteen--a man._

“His ears aren’t pierced. He’s no man,” Shade argued, as if this small detail meant everything. 

More images. A massacre in Castle Town; a young man who barely avoided being amongst the dead; Princess Zelda. _Teach him what he needs to know,_ the images said. _You gave us your word. We are calling you out on it._

There was little Shade could do against the wishes of a Goddess. He was in no position to bargain with her. He bowed low in respectful accord to the task. When he raised his head, he found himself alone with the young man once more. 

Shade walked to the young man to check his vitals. Though the wounds were still grave, his body appeared to be working around them to keep itself alive. There was warmth to the young man’s skin, and he was still breathing with ease. Shade collected fresh bandages from amongst Saria’s supplies to clean and redress the wounds. Blood still stained the new dressings, but it was in smaller amounts. The young man truly had taken a turn for the better. 

Shade left the house and hurried to Mido’s home. Saria was asleep in the bed. Her host--the self-proclaimed Kokiri boss--twitched and snored on his makeshift sofa bed. He didn’t wake when Shade and Saria crept past him and out the door. 

Saria was amazed by the young man’s turn. Her quick evaluation confirmed what Shade already knew. In enraptured silence, she listened to Shade’s recount of the past quarter-hour’s events. Together, the two of them knelt by the young man; Saria took up his left hand. At her touch, the symbol of the Triforce appeared with its bottom-right section alight in gold. 

“This is the one,” Saria said. “The one we’ve been waiting for. He’s the chosen of the Goddesses. He’s meant to save our world.”

“He’s barely a man,” Shade reminded her. His eyebrows drew close together. “And given the state I found him in, he knows just as much about combat as he does about flying like a bird.”

“Well, the Goddess Farore _did_ tell you to teach him, didn’t she?” Saria pointed out. She smiled when Shade grumbled a response. “The Goddesses don’t choose their representatives lightly. If Farore recognized him, it means he has the courage required to protect this land and reclaim it from dark forces. It will be your job to help him find that readiness and courage.”

Shade shook his head. “I can’t do it all alone.”

“You won’t have to,” Saria said, still with her smile. “Have you forgotten, Shade? You have Sages on your side. We’ll aid you in helping this young man to fulfill the destiny placed on him.”

#

Over many slow minutes, Link grew aware of a folded lap at the back of his head. The touch was strange after so long in darkness, but he latched onto it. It provided the purchase he needed to rise out of the muffling blackness. 

Something cold and hard pressed against Link’s lips. He resisted at first, but the first drop of broth on his tongue changed his mind. He parted his lips and swallowed a small spoonful of the stuff. The warmth of it moving down his throat was bliss.

“There you go. Good job,” a soft voice murmured.

Link thought he recognized that voice, but the memory was buried deep under time and the pain running rampant through his body. He grimaced in frustration and shifted a little. Even this small movement sparked a deeper ache in his chest. 

“Easy,” the voice soothed. “Take this. It will help you with the pain.”

A spoon was once again pressed to Link’s lips. This time its contents were bitter. He swallowed it nonetheless, trusting the voice he could almost recognize. It was followed by another spoonful of broth, and countless more. Finally, when the pain was ebbing away, Link found a little strength to open his eyes. He looked up into a warm, green gaze.

The gaze widened. “I know those blue eyes. We met before when you were a child, didn’t we? You came to the Lost Woods looking for your brother.”

Link was too drained to do anything more than shift his head a little. Yet a memory rose up in his head of a child-shaped shadow standing amongst the trees, and later that same shadow pressing a mushroom into his hand. A sudden thought came to his head: _I’m safe._ With that realization, he closed his eyes and slipped back into sleep. 

Several times a day, the voice returned to spoon nourishment into Link’s healing body. The broths became simple soups over time, and each day Link opened his eyes for a longer period than before. He learned the voice’s name--Saria. She was a Kokiri; a member of the mythical, child-like race that lived within the Lost Woods. 

There were other Kokiri as well. They popped in on occasion to peer at the young Hylian with curious expressions. Some of them offered tentative greetings, however it was a few days before Link could manage the words to respond. He told them his name, and they started to address him as such with the ease of good friends. It wasn’t uncommon for Link to open his eyes at the touch of Saria’s spoon on his lips and find half a dozen Kokiri gathered around him, eager to inspect him and pass the time with idle chatter. 

Saria talked too. Among other things, she told Link of how he was saved by the man named Shade; a person Link had not yet met. He was a traveler, a wanderer, a mercenary… He had many titles and names. Shade was not even his true name. It was only how he most often referred to himself. 

Link didn’t understand how he or the man Shade could be within the Lost Woods without suffering from its curse. He presented this concern to Saria one day as she washed his healing body. 

“Ordinarily that would be the case,” Saria replied. Her efficiency with a sponge and general graciousness helped Link to forget his embarrassment of being so exposed before her. “However, Shade has the blessing of our guardian spirit, the Great Deku Tree. When we saw you would pull through your first night here, we sought out that same blessing for you. From now on the curse won’t touch you, and you’ll always find your way through the woods.”

“But how did I survive?” Link asked. 

Saria only shook her head. She had no idea--or so Link was led to believe. In truth, Saria was told to keep the knowledge of the Triforce piece Link now carried between herself and Shade.

“If the wrong person finds out about the power he carries, his life--and the fate of this land--will be sealed,” Shade had warned Saria. “He’ll find out when he’s ready. Until then, not a word to him or to anyone we can’t fully trust.”

Shade was not around since that first night when he arrived with Link in his arms. Saria wasn’t concerned; it was common for the man to go a while without visiting the Kokiri. But she had to admit she was curious about what he was up to. She hoped he was making the rounds to the Sages. Link was going to need a lot of help.

After two weeks under Saria’s care, Link was strong enough to feed and bathe himself. The stitched-up wound in his chest was healing over quickly thanks to the forest medicines that Saria diligently applied to it. However, Link still had to be careful. His body wasn’t finished healing under the scarred skin, although even that was moving along quicker than normal. 

The wound in Link’s shoulder was a different story. Though the gash was closed with a ribbon of scar tissue, the right arm had regained only a fraction of the feeling it had lost. Link’s movements with the arm were stiff, and his fingers were good only for clutching weakly. 

“I think you’d better teach your other arm fast,” Saria said one day with a shake of her head. Link sighed, picked up the fork he had dropped for the third time, and switched it to his left hand.

By the third week, Link took his first steps outside Saria’s house. In the clear air and open spaces, he seemed to regain energy by the hour. He was finally free of bandages, and as he walked around the village, the Kokiri gazed curiously at the twin, ragged scars that marred his chest and back. 

After a refreshing bath in an outside pool, Link was presented with new clothes from Saria: several sets of green tunics and tan pants to match the Kokiri’s forest clothes. She had playfully sewed him a floppy hat to match. Link wore the hat to please her as his feet were measured for the final touches on a new set of boots. They fit like a charm once they were complete, and the hat quickly became a favorite of Link’s. 

Fully dressed, Link rose to his feet. He spun slowly in place for the Kokiri to examine him. A hem was fixed here, a bootlace shortened there, a belt was added, and finally the Kokiri voiced their approval. 

A Kokiri girl ran up to the group. “Master Shade has returned!” she announced. Link followed her pointing finger to see an older man ride into the village atop a brown, black-maned mare. The horse was halted by a tree, and a few Kokiri rushed forward to tend to her after Shade dismounted.

Shade, a Hylian, was taller than Link, who had not yet grown to a man’s full height. The traveler was dressed in clothes that clearly spelled the miles he had trekked. On his back were a sheathed sword and a round shield. His hair was shoulder length, tied loosely back with a leather thong, and gray-blonde in color. His eyes were dull blue; a scar crossed the right one, although his vision appeared no less depleted for it when he fixed a steady gaze on Link.

“What’s this?” Shade asked after stepping up to where Link and many of the Kokiri were gathered. “Did one of my forest friends finally grow up?” The question was met with the Kokiri’s laughter.

Link supposed, dressed as he was, he did look like an overgrown Kokiri. He smiled a little at this before a realization hit him: this man had saved his life. Link quickly bowed at the waist to offer his thanks. He barely said three words before his head swam. Link dropped to his rear, and his eyes fluttered. He felt as if he was about to faint. His hands clutched weakly at the grass, seeking solidity in its rough blades as the world tilted around him.

The Kokiri backed away, voicing their alarm, while Shade dropped to one knee. His firm hand on Link’s shoulder helped the younger Hylian remain conscious. “Easy, Link,” Shade urged. “You’re still recovering. No sudden movements for a while, all right? I take it you’ve been on your feet for a couple hours, too.” Link nodded once. “Okay. Let’s get you back inside where you can rest.”

Link accepted Shade’s hand, and with the man’s help he was able to gain his feet. “How do you know my name?” he asked as he was escorted back to Saria’s house.

Shade laughed a little. “I’ve been visiting some friends these past weeks at Saria’s request. One of them happens to be the princess’s nurse, Impa. When she heard my story of a young man who had been stabbed and tossed into the river, she instantly guessed it was you. She told me a bit about you, and if you have the strength I’d like to hear even more from your side of the story.”

Link was given some water and a few minutes to collect his breath. Over the course of an hour, he told both Shade and Saria everything--from the very beginning when Darcel had run away to the Lost Woods and up until the last conscious moment Link could recall in the moat, fighting back shadowy monsters in the oppressive water. It was here that Link properly expressed his gratitude to both Shade and Saria. Both of them accepted the words with nods and smiles. 

“But we’re not the only ones you should be thanking,” Shade spoke up. He whistled once, short and loud. Seconds later, a blue-white orb zoomed into the house. It circled Link’s head several times before settling upon his shoulder. “That fairy kept you alive,” Shade explained. “I don’t know how she found you, but maybe things like that are better left unexplained. I’ve taken to calling her Navi, seeing how she navigated me to you. She seems to like it.”

“Look, Link, now you’re a true Kokiri,” Saria said with a laugh. At her cue, a pink fairy rose out of her collar to hover by her head. “Each Kokiri is blessed with a guardian fairy.”

“Navi, huh?” Link turned his head and watched the fairy rise from his shoulder. She hovered over his head for a few seconds and settled onto his hat. “Nice to meet you, Navi. Your color looks familiar. I think we met before. Were you the fairy in the bottle my brother once bought for me?” Navi’s answer was to shoot up and whirl around Link’s head in quick circles before settling back on his shoulder. “It seems I’m meeting quite a few old faces,” Link remarked, casting Saria a smile.

“But there are plenty of new ones ahead,” Shade promised Link. “You want to rescue Princess Zelda, right? For that, you’ll need training from a number of our friends.”

Link drew into himself, and his smile dropped. “You’re kidding, right?” he mumbled. “All my life I’ve been weak. I couldn’t save my brother from his bad decisions, and I couldn’t stop Ganondorf. So there’s no way I can save Zelda. I mean, look at how well I did the last time.”

“You are inexperienced, young, and unprepared,” Shade agreed. “But you can be so much more, Link. I’m sure of it. You are the hero Hyrule needs.”

“Hyrule wouldn’t have missed me if I never survived,” Link whispered to his lap. “I’m no hero.”

Shade set his jaw and stood up. “Three days,” he said. Link cast a wary look up at him. “In three days’ time, you’ll start your training. Until then, rest and build up your endurance. I can’t have you fainting in the middle of swordplay practice.”

“Swordplay?” Link’s face was one of disbelief. “With _this_ arm?” He raised his numb right arm for a moment.

“No, with the other one,” Shade replied. “Your left arm. Your left hand.”

There was something behind Shade’s reply that snagged at Link. It was almost cryptic in quality. Link noticed Saria shifted in her seat as if she, too, understood there was a hint of something else. But that something was never revealed, and Shade left Link to his rest without any further words.


	9. Buried Deep

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Link gains an equine companion on his way to Death Mountain, where Shade leaves him to train with the Gorons.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for your amazing support!
> 
> I love writing about the Gorons, so this chapter and the next are two of my favorites in this story. I hope you like them!
> 
> Feedback is welcomed. Please enjoy, thanks!

# In the Shade of a Hero

### Buried Deep

In the middle of the Kokiri Forest, the trees echoed back the sharp clangs of steel on steel--as well as the groans and cheers of numerous Kokiri who reacted to every near-miss, every skillful dodge, and every hit landed. They lined a wide circle of grass that was worn down to the soil from the week-long practice spars between Link and Shade. 

The traveling swordsman and friend to the Kokiri had decided to take Link under his wing and train him to be a hero. Link didn’t know why he had to be the one to receive training. There were more fitting men in Kakariko Village. He was hardly familiar with weaponry, and his once-dominant right arm was now almost useless except for the most brunt of work. 

“You have a fair share of dead nerves,” Shade had confirmed on the first day after Link’s allotted three-day rest. He and the young Hylian had marked out a circle in the grass with chalk and now stood within it. Shade was running his fingers up and down Link’s right arm, which had yet to regain the full feeling of its past. “But you’re still able to move the arm and grip, which is all you’ll need for now,” Shade added, and he handed Link the round shield off of his back. “It will be your shield arm.”

The shield was heavy, but Link was used to hard labor from his work with the castle’s animals, as well as the help he had occasionally offered to Malon of Lon Lon Ranch. He lifted the shield with ease--which was a good thing, for at that moment Shade drew his sword and slashed at the Hylian. Link got his shield up in time only to stagger back from the blow when Shade’s sword connected with it. He fell hard to the ground and looked up at his tutor in surprise. 

“You’ll need to be stronger,” Shade remarked. “If you pratfall after every hit you’ll be dead in no time. Now, how is your left arm coming along? Are you comfortable using it yet?”

“No,” Link said, his tone sullen as he stood up.

“Too bad,” Shade said, and he nodded towards a sheathed sword lying along the edge of the circle. “Better get used to it fast. I’m not going to go easy on you. Your enemies surely won’t, so why spoil you now? Pick up that blade, and let’s begin.”

Link didn’t learn how to use the sword at first. It remained in its scabbard against his back for nearly a week while Shade drilled him on proper defensive strategies with only the shield. And although Link had studied and practiced diligently, this was his first time with a blade in his hand; and in the wake of the blade’s foreignness he was forgetting everything he’d learned about defense. The sword was an awkward extension of a lesser arm, and its weight threw Link off. He was fleeing more than fighting; the sword hanging forgotten in his hand as he brought his shield up, or dodged attacks in an increasingly desperate manner. 

Shade wasn’t letting up. In fact, he was putting more and more into each of his attacks. Link felt every blow vibrate against his shield, through his numb arm, and up his spine to his skull. It was maddening teaching, and he still had no idea why he had to be the hero Hyrule supposedly needed. He only knew he had to try and survive this match.

Shade was growing tired of watching Link run around like a mouse being chased by a cat. The swordsman took hold of his blade’s hilt in both hands and swung it hard at Link. 

The younger Hylian blocked and was subsequently knocked down when the overpowering move proved too much for him. He hit the ground hard and instinctively curled up when he saw the blade swinging back to him. The Kokiri gasped and groaned, but only the soft touch of the sword’s flat made contact with Link’s cheek. He opened his eyes and looked up along the blade to see Shade glaring down at him. 

“Why are you cowering? Get up!”

Link scrambled to his feet and took two steps back to put some distance between himself and Shade. His tutor immediately reclosed that distance, and with a few quick motions he had Link unequipped of his sword and shield. 

The swordsman tossed the weapons to the ground and snapped, “Look at how easily I was able to take your only means of defense away! Look at how easily I rendered you harmless by removing your blade! And you just stood there as I did it!”

“I thought the lesson was over,” Link said into the hush surrounding him. The Kokiri were watching the two men with wide eyes. 

“The lesson is _never_ over!” Shade shouted. “Not even if you had won would it have been over--and you would have _never_ won!”

“That’s because I’m not like you!” Link shouted back. His Kokiri admirers drew in a collective gasp. They had never seen Link talk back to his tutor in such a manner. “I’m not a hero! I don’t know where you’re getting this idea that Hyrule needs me, of all people, but I’m not the one to save this land!”

“Yes you are,” Shade said in a much lower voice, forcing Link to listen. “You just need to find the skills and courage hidden within you.”

“The most courageous thing I’ve ever done was enter the castle in search of Zelda,” Link said. “And look how well _that_ turned out.”

“You’re still alive, aren’t you?” Shade pointed out. In response, Link fell into a sullen silence. Shade stepped back and nodded towards Link’s fallen sword and shield. “Pick them up--don’t worry, I’m not going to attack you.” The swordsman sheathed his blade, and Link bent over to collect his weaponry. Even so, he kept his blue gaze mostly on Shade. 

_So he’s not completely stupid,_ Shade thought with some admiration. Aloud, he said, “Hold them up properly. Let me look at you. I want to see if you’ve gotten any stronger this past week.”

Link raised his shield and sword in a ready stance. The blade in his hand began to waver almost at once, its balance off in the weaker left hand. Shade marked it with a faint click of his tongue before walking around to Link’s right side. He felt along the Hylian’s tensed right arm. Link turned his head to watch him, and Shade snapped, “Eyes forward!” Link’s head jerked front again while Shade’s fingers continued to probe, now along his shoulder, back, and neck. “How long do you think you can hold the shield up like that?”

Link thought on the question and eventually admitted, “Not long if I have to hold the sword as well.”

Shade’s fingers were moving along the left side of Link’s back and shoulders. He frowned when a muscle twitched under some gentle probing. “You’re not familiar with this kind of work.”

“No, really?” Link said with clear sarcasm that earned him a sharp crack over the back of his head. His hat cushioned some of the blow, but not all of it.

“What _are_ you good for?” Shade mumbled, more to himself, and he dropped his hands.

“I’m a good ranch hand,” Link replied. 

“That’s not going to help you against the forces of evil,” Shade pointed out.

“But I can lasso them,” Link suggested, only to duck his head when his tutor looked ready to hit him again. 

Instead of lashing out, Shade moved back into Link’s direct sight and studied the Hylian a little more. His eyes lingered longer and longer on the drooping sword. Finally he sighed and said, “You’re not going to find much in this forest to build and test your strength, so I’ll take you to the Gorons. If anyone can teach you defense and strength, they can.”

“The Gorons?” Link repeated. “The Gorons of Death Mountain?”

“Do you know of any other?” Shade asked. He gestured towards the Kokiri with a vague wave, telling them the show--for today--was over. They returned to their chores and daily ins and outs with disappointed groans. 

Link lowered his sword and said, “I’ve never been up to Death Mountain. I’ve never seen a Goron in real life.”

“They are an intimidating race,” Shade said. “But they are kind. They will teach you well.” The swordsman sighed. “However, getting there isn’t exactly easy. We’ll both need horses--unless you want to carry all of our supplies up the mountain?” Link shook his head. “Alright. So… Let’s see if you’re of any real use, Mister Ranch Hand.”

#

“Her name is Epona.”

The brown mare within the narrow stall kicked hard at the wooden walls, and the entire stable seemed to tremble along with her infuriated whinny.

“She’s the only other horse I have left,” Malon continued with a face drawn down into a grim look. “Ganondorf took the others.”

Link and Shade had traveled on foot from the Lost Woods into a land that was already beginning to show signs of depreciation under Ganondorf’s dark rule. Link was stunned by even the smallest of changes, and for several minutes he could only stand in Hyrule Field and observe the browning grass, the gray sky, and the frail light of the sun. He and his brother had spent most of their childhoods in Hyrule Field and the adjoining Lake Hylia shore, preferring the natural beauty over the unnatural misery at home. Now all of that beauty was fading away.

Shade was nearly a hundred yards away before he noticed his apprentice wasn’t immediately behind him. He had doubled back, his hand already warming up to the blow it would knock across Link’s head; standing out in the open in what was now enemy territory, the stupidity of the boy never ceased to amaze Shade! But the desire to discipline had died at the sight of Link’s lost expression of devastation. “I know it’s bad, Link,” Shade had said. “But it will only get worse if we don’t do something about it.”

Link had turned to Shade with a strange look in his eyes. Their blue color shined out with renewed energy, and it was almost as if a true hero was standing in the field. “Yes,” was all Link had said, and he had taken the lead to Lon Lon Ranch.

Even this once-peaceful place had fallen under Ganondorf’s harsh hand. Malon now lived in constant fear of the Evil King arriving to finish off what remained of her father’s ranch. There were few cows left, and only two horses. One of them--an older mare of no use to Ganondorf, who wanted only fresh horses--was already granted to Shade to borrow, since the swordsman insisted his own horse would be no good on the mountain trail. That left only…

The stall walls shuddered again, and a long whinny rent the air along with the boom of hooves against wood. The whinny trailed off into a snort, and the rope binding Epona’s head in place twanged when it was pulled taut. 

Shade braced a boot atop a milking stool and leaned over his bent knee. He cast a look at Link, who was observing the horse with a pale face. “Only Epona is left? Why didn’t Ganondorf want such a charming creature?”

“Link can tell you, she’s really very sweet,” Malon insisted, and Link nodded. A hard rear kick to the stall refuted both of them. “She used to like the song I sang to her until this evil air started to permeate the land. Since then, I haven’t been able to calm her.”

Shade leaned further forward and nudged Link gently in the back, pushing the young Hylian closer to the stall. “Go on, hero,” Shade encouraged with a teasing smile. 

Link pressed his lips into a thin line. “Malon, do you have her bridle?” he asked.

“She’ll bite your fingers off if you try to put it on her,” Malon said.

Link sighed and bowed his head. “Okay…” He raised his head and swept off his hat. With a determined expression, he walked forward with the hat in his hand and climbed over the stall’s wall. For the safety of the ranch’s visitors, Epona was confined to a narrow stall. A rope bound her in place; it was wound around her nose. Link stood with a leg braced on either side of the stall so that he was astride Epona’s back, but not yet touching her. The horse, sensing his closeness, kicked and whinnied in warning for him to back off. 

“Epona,” Link called in a soothing voice. “Hey, girl, do you remember me?” He whistled a few notes of Epona’s song, but it was cut off by another whinny. 

Link waited until Epona had calmed down a little more before he lowered himself onto her back. She immediately tried to rear, but the rope denied her, and there was no room for her to bring her back legs up in a buck. Even so, Epona fought hard to dislodge Link, and so he moved fast to shift up towards her head and throw his hat over her eyes. A few quick knots had the hat bound like a blindfold around the mare’s head. 

“Open the stall and barn door!” Link ordered over Epona’s new outrage. “She’s going to bolt as soon as I remove this rope!”

“You’re going to do _what?”_ Malon cried. 

Shade had already opened the stall, and now he hurried to roll open the barn door leading out into the paddock. Once Link saw the way was open he motioned for both Shade and Malon to move aside, wrapped his right arm tightly around Epona’s powerful neck, and slipped off the rope from her nose with his left hand. 

Link was almost at once thrown off when Epona fully reared. Only by securing a hold with his left arm as well as his right did he remain on her back. The mare came down hard and instantly bucked, this time nearly sending Link rolling forward over her head. When neither of these efforts dislodged her unwelcome rider, Epona bucked and kicked her way blindly out of her stall and charged towards the fresh air she could smell. She nearly ran into a wall before Link’s last-second tug on her mane led her cleanly out through the door. 

Now that she could feel grass beneath her hooves, Epona doubled her efforts. Link clung as tightly as he could, but his halved arm strength secured him a swift ejection off of Epona’s back before too long. He fell hard to the ground on his back and immediately rolled away from the mare before he could be trampled.

Shade was roaring with laughter within the barn door while Malon looked on with her hand over her mouth in concern. Link stood up, and a twang of pain shot across the top of his back. He winced, but forced a smile onto his face when he looked back at Malon. “That was just a warm up,” he assured her, and he limped off after Epona. 

The mare was now circling blindly within the paddock; often tossing her head with a distressed whinny in an attempt to loosen the hat obscuring her vision. On his belt, Link had hung a lasso of rope before leaving the Kokiri Forest. He pulled the lasso out now and began to inch closer to Epona. She skirted him every time when she heard his approach, but in one instance she came close enough. Link launched his lasso before she could trot out of range. It sailed over her head, and when it was pulled taut around her neck, Epona reared with a renewed cry of anger and fear. 

Link wasted no time shortening the rope until he was within range of Epona’s hooves once more. He had enough strength to hold her in place until he could seize her forelock and drag her head down. Link held the rope taut with his stronger left hand and bowed Epona’s head further down with his right until the two of them could press their foreheads together. He was trying to channel calm into her. He didn’t know where this talent had come from, but Link was always successful in calming a beast down once he was able to achieve this close contact. It helped if the horse or bull was blinded. It forced the creature to rely on other senses such as touch and smell, which stabilized the connection stronger than sight. 

Link closed his own eyes and tried not to think about the possibility of Epona biting or kicking him as he held his forehead against hers. Her nostrils exhaled warm, moist air against his chest, and her pulse thrummed under the hand he now stroked along her head. Every inch of the horse vibrated with energy--an energy that soon started to slip towards calm. 

Link wasn’t sure how long he stood there with Epona. Like the instance in the desolate field, his mind was lost to what he was experiencing through some deeper sense. Though the world around him--even Lon Lon Ranch--was soured with an evil air, the atmosphere around him and Epona was pure, and he knew it could never be touched or broken by any malignant force. 

Link released his tight grip on the rope and allowed it to hang slack. With his more able hand he undid the knots of his hat and tugged it off. Epona raised her head with a snort when her vision was clear again. Her velvety nose combed through Link’s hair, and her lips tugged gently at the strands, drawing a laugh from the Hylian. 

“I’m not grass,” Link pointed out to Epona, and he replaced his hat to deter her. He slipped the loosened lasso off next and patted her neck. “See?” Link called, turning back to his tutor and Malon. “I have it under control.”

_Well, he certainly does seem to have some skill in elemental magic,_ Shade thought while Malon ran forward, glad to see her favorite horse calm once again. _No one out of touch with nature could have calmed that horse with such ease. Maybe the Goddesses know what they’re doing by placing Hyrule’s fate in his hands._

Shade paused in his thoughts when he saw Malon embrace Link in a gesture of thanks. The swordsman marked the barely-there grimace that Malon missed, and he watched Link shift his sore shoulders once the ranch girl had turned her attentions back to Epona. _He_ is _strong,_ Shade noted. _He’s able to hide his weakness when necessary. He’ll need that, but first and foremost he needs the abilities to avoid suffering from those weaknesses._ Shade turned his gaze out towards the distant peak of Death Mountain, and his face clouded with worry. _I hope he’s ready._

#

“Ow. _Ow!”_

Link’s indignant cries of pain echoed out over the caverns and crevasses marring Death Mountain’s cliffs. Not far off, Epona raised her head from a scant crop of grass and whinnied once. The blue-white fairy atop the horse’s head rose up in alarm, but her healing magic was used up from saving Link’s life. She could only float above him in worried circles while Shade applied a soothing cream to the tender bruises that stained Link’s back.

“You tossed him pretty good, Epona!” the swordsman called with a laugh. 

Link grumbled when his horse whinnied again in what sounded like a laugh. His mood, however, was better now that the cream was working to ease his pain. He felt his muscles begin to relax, although some pain remained when he flexed his arms up in order to replace his tunic. 

“Don’t think the Gorons will go easy on you just because you have a bruised back,” Shade warned as he and Link mounted their respective horses to continue the trek up the mountain. “Above all things, Gorons value strength of the body and spirit. A man who lacks that will not earn their respect.”

Link frowned down at his saddle horn. “How can I match the strength of a Goron if I’m only one Hylian?” he asked. He felt Navi tug at a tip of his ear, and he corrected with a smile at her, “Well, one Hylian and a fairy.”

Shade had an answer ready. “Unity of the single body and spirit,” he recited, “is just as powerful and important as the unity of a group of people.”

“Um… What?” Link asked with a confused tilt of his head. 

“Constancy,” Shade said, as if this explained everything. 

It didn’t, and Link was left even more confused than before. “This is going to be a long road,” he muttered.

#

There was a Goron waiting for the two Hylians when they arrived to the entrance of the Goron City, the expansive system of caves and caverns within Death Mountain. The Gorons lived and thrived on the rocks of the mountain--particularly the nutrient-rich rocks of Dodongo Cavern. However, the Goron who greeted Shade and Link assured his guests more Hylian-friendly food was prepared for them in celebration of their arrival. 

Link peered at the Goron, amazed by the creature’s makeup. He had skinny limbs that no doubt had some hidden strength, for they served the Goron’s heavy body well enough. When the Goron turned to greet Shade directly, Link noted the rough appearance of his back. He seemed to be carved out of stone with the only true signs of life being in the creature’s bright eyes and warm voice. It was a strange hybrid of flesh and earth, but a friendly one. 

Shade had finished exchanging greetings with the Goron--named Orin-goro-grack, or Orin for short--and now the Goron said, “Elder Darunia informed us of your coming arrival, Brother Shade, but he did not tell us the reason why you are choosing to visit us. Would it have anything to do with the recent troubles in Hyrule?”

“It does,” Shade said with a grim nod. “But I have found a solution for our problems--or at least part of the solution. A hero, Orin. His name is Link.” Shade waved a hand at Link, who snapped to attention. His eyes were marking a soaring bird. He thought it was an owl, but he didn’t think that was likely given the daylight hour.

Orin shuffled closer to Link and peered into his eyes from such a close distance, Link was forced to step back. “A hero?” Orin repeated, doubtful. “But Brother, he is so _small.”_

“Strength lies within, I assure you,” Shade said. He sighed. “But it’s buried deep.”

Orin nodded and drew back from Link, who relaxed. “The strongest, best rocks lay deep underground,” the Goron said sagely. 

Link arched an eyebrow. What did rocks have to do with anything?

“Come,” Shade said, and he gestured to both Link and Orin. “I’m sure the other Gorons are eager to start the welcoming meal. We shouldn’t keep them waiting. Link, walk with me.”

Link had little choice on this matter. He couldn’t have kept up with Orin if he wanted to, for the Goron tucked his limbs close to his body, dropped to the ground, and rolled off like a ball. He disappeared into Goron City with eerie speed, trailing a tail of dirt and dust, leaving Link and Shade to make their slower way into the city. 

“Why did that Goron call you ‘Brother’?” Link asked his tutor as they walked.

“In the Goron tribe, everyone is Brother to one another,” Shade replied. “For anyone outside of the tribe--for instance, a Hylian like you--that title must be earned.”

“How did _you_ earn it?” Link asked. Shade’s lips pressed into a thin line, and he did not answer. “Okay… So, are the Gorons all literal brothers to each other?”

Shade’s grim lips spread into a smile. “Well… I’ll leave that to Darunia to show you. You’re arriving at a good time for your training, Link. It will be Birth Day in a week.”

“Birthday?” Link repeated. “Whose birthday?”

“Not birthday. _Birth_ Day.”

“The difference being…?” 

Shade sighed and shook his head, and Link decided to drop the subject for now before his tutor grew annoyed. He instead turned his attentions to the city as a whole. The Gorons’ home was built as a many-leveled city that descended down a gradual pit. Halls led off from each level, leading deeper into the city, and touches of the Goron culture were everywhere. Murals filled the walls, and carvings gave character to doorways. Link studied the painted murals of battles between dragons and Goron heroes, and wondered--with a hint of unease--if he would have to fight a dragon someday. When the smell of fresh food met Link’s nose, he forgot his worries. 

The Gorons were already eating by the time Link and Shade arrived to the open space on the bottom level of the city. Many members of the tribe were seated around a table laden with stone. A smaller table was covered in cooked meat, and fresh fruits and vegetables. The Gorons spilled over into the stairways and ledges that led off of the bottom floor. There was plenty of food to go around, and the air was jovial. Gorons greeted Shade with eagerness and were friendly enough to Link, despite only just meeting him. They did not, however, call him Brother like they called Shade, and Link felt a faint sting, as if he wasn’t good enough. Whenever the sting grew to be too much, another Goron would eagerly push more food onto Link and express his delight at having met the Hylian, and Link would forget about his bruised pride. 

After a half hour of feasting, Link felt a light tap on his sore shoulder, and he looked to his left to see Shade beckon him to stand. The Gorons were occupied more with each other--singing, dancing and eating--than they were with their guests, so it was easy for Link and Shade to slip out of the crowd to a door cut into a wall. 

This door was adorned with emblems depicting a red stone alongside the more familiar Triforce. The passageway beyond it was dark. It soon gave over to a small chamber lit by torchlight; Link placed it as some sort of shrine or meditation chamber. A stone statue of a Goron stood at the back of the room with small offerings laid at its feet. A woven mat adorned with more Triforces and red stones lay in the middle of the floor. At Shade’s indication, Link knelt down on this mat beside his tutor so that he was facing the Goron statue. 

“So this is the hero you spoke of, Brother?”

Link started badly. What he thought was a portion of the room’s rocky wall now turned around to reveal itself as a Goron--a Goron far larger and stronger than any other Link had so far met. This Goron’s head was surrounded by a mass of gray-brown hair--almost a mane. His arms and legs were thick with muscle, and he walked with purpose and importance to the mat where he knelt down opposite his visitors with unexpected grace. 

Shade bowed forward, and Link was quick to copy him. “Elder Darunia,” Shade greeted, and Darunia returned the bow with a nod of his head; bowing appeared difficult for him given his girth. Shade straightened up and began to speak, but the language was strange. 

Link, now also upright, could only stare as his tutor and the Goron Elder exchanged words in this odd tongue. Parts of the words caught at Link’s mind almost as if he could understand them if he only listened hard enough. It took him a minute to realize why: Shade and Darunia were speaking Hylian, but the dialect was so ancient it was hard for Link to grasp what was being said. He did catch his name a few times, however, along with Ganondorf’s, Zelda’s, and--once--Darcel’s and Vaati’s in the same sentence. Clearly, Shade was giving a brief rundown of Link’s troubles in the castle. Link blushed self-consciously whenever Darunia looked at him. 

Once Shade was finished, Darunia finally spoke in a low, gentle rumble. “So… Link, correct?” He looked to Link, who nodded. “Brother Shade says you are destined to save Hyrule.”

“So he believes,” Link said.

“And you do not?” Darunia asked. 

Link shrugged his shoulders and immediately regretted the action when they throbbed with dull pain. The pain reminded him of his fragility in the presence of such a powerful being as Darunia. “I’m not a strong Goron,” Link said. “I don’t even have the strength I used to have. How can I save Hyrule in such a condition?”

“By _reconditioning,”_ Darunia replied while Shade looked on. “We will train you here, little hero,” Darunia continued. “You will be as good as a Goron in your own way. We will rebuild your strength--physically and spiritually. As you strengthen your weaker arm and regain what you once had in your other, you will grow wiser and more aware of yourself and your abilities, and when you leave here in two weeks you will be reborn.”

“If you say so,” Link muttered.

Darunia was on his feet in a flash. Link quailed in the Goron Elder’s shadow while Shade shook his head and tried not to laugh aloud. _“You doubt my words?”_ Darunia roared, loud enough to shake detritus from the ceiling of the room. _“You doubt the words of a Goron Brother? A member and Elder of the Goron tribe? Do you think I speak of anything lightly, little hero?”_

“N-No…” Link couldn’t speak. Darunia was immense in his ire. The Goron Elder stood tall over the young Hylian and breathed heavily through his nostrils. His rock-hard body heaved with each breath taken in and left out. 

“Your apprentice has much to learn, Brother,” Darunia finally said in a calmer voice, and he retreated from Link to kneel down again. 

Link straightened back onto his knees and tried to abolish the tremble in his body. 

“He is young,” Shade said, and Darunia gave a forgiving nod of his head. “I hesitate to call him a man despite his age. He has much to prove. I leave him in your good hands, my Brother.”

Link jerked his head up when Shade stood up from the mat. “You’re leaving?”

“And you’re staying,” Shade said. “I will take Epona back down the mountain for you, but I’ll leave the supplies. I’ll see you again in two weeks, Link.”

“Wait!” Link scrambled to his feet as Shade walked out of the room. The young Hylian remembered to spare a brief bow to Darunia before taking off after his tutor. He caught him in an empty stairway. “You can’t leave me here,” Link said once he had stopped Shade. “Please… These Gorons will crush me to bits! Did you see the way Darunia looked at me--like I was some piece of meat?”

“Then you will be perfectly safe here, seeing how the Gorons eat only stone,” Shade said with a teasing smile. Link’s face paled, and the swordsman shook him off. “Link, you worry too much. I have full confidence in you, and so does Darunia, or he would have never agreed to take you under his wing for training. With his teachings, I’m sure you’ll gain a few more of the skills needed to save Hyrule.”

“I can’t save--”

“Enough,” Shade cut in, his tone final, and Link fell silent. “Stop doubting yourself. Continue to wallow in uncertainty, and you will do no one any good. Pay attention and do your best. In short, _open your eyes and shut your mouth.”_

Link immediately went to protest… only to shut his mouth and hang his head. Shade offered him a reassuring pat on his shoulder, remembering to be gentle given Link’s sore muscles. With a final goodbye, he disappeared up the stairs, leaving Link to head back down to the ground level of Goron City.

“Little hero!”

Link lifted his eyes from his feet to see two Gorons having some sort of competition centered around which one of them could break the biggest rock with his head. “Join us, little hero!” Link heard Orin call.

“Oh yes,” Link said through clenched teeth. Navi emerged from his collar to encourage him on with eager swoops through the air. “It’s going to be a long road.”


	10. Birth Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Link begins his strength training under Darunia's tutelage, and Birth Day arrives.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You're all awesome for supporting this fanfiction!
> 
> I love Gorons. They're awesome. For the Birth Day chapter, I wanted to create my own theory of how Gorons are born. I hope you have as much fun reading it as I did writing it. The next chapter will be a Goron chapter too, yay! 
> 
> Please enjoy, thank you!

# In the Shade of a Hero

### Birth Day

Even in the midst of sleep, the Gorons were not a quiet race. On his first night in the Goron City, Link tossed and turned endlessly while the Gorons snored and snorted around him. It didn’t help that his bed was a sheet of rock. The Gorons may not have minded such a mattress, but Link’s body wasn’t as tough as a Goron’s. When he finally gave up and rose with the sunlight that peeked through the city’s air vents, Link counted no less than five bruises on his skin where the rock had pressed into him. And his sore back was even worse. His shoulders were stiff as boards, and his back throbbed with each flex of the muscles supporting his spine. Link sat up only to double over in pain. He had to stifle his cry so as to not wake the five Gorons who shared the bedroom he was bunked in. 

Navi flitted out from amongst Link’s traveling bags and flew over to circle the Hylian with concern. He offered her a reassuring smile and got up to collect fresh clothes from his bag. Saria had crafted him several Kokiri tunics and pants; they had grown to become Link’s preferred daywear. After relieving himself and washing down in a small, stone washroom adjoining the bedroom, Link dressed and walked out into one of the city’s many arteries. Out here the snores of the Gorons could barely be heard. Link followed the stone tunnels, taking turns on whims with Navi following him in her usual silent but loyal way. It wasn’t long before she zoomed past Link’s head, taking a left turn into an arm of a tunnel that angled up. 

Link followed Navi and soon found himself walking out into sunlight. The tunnel’s mouth opened out to a wide, flat ledge that overlooked a deep crevasse cut into Death Mountain’s side like a wound. The crevasse spanned a quarter of a mile, and within it were columns of rock shaped as toadstools, whittled from eons of rain, wind, and the occasional volcanic expulsion of lava. Atop one of the wider columns, Link caught sight of Darunia sitting cross-legged with his eyes closed and his large hands resting on his knees. Link approached the lip of the ledge and stuck his upper body out beyond it to look into the crevasse. The walls angled down into a black sea of shadows far below. Death surely awaited anyone who fell. 

“Link!” boomed a voice, and Link looked up to see Darunia standing on his column. The Goron Elder gestured with a hand for Link to approach. Link shook his head and took a step back. 

Darunia’s eyes narrowed. “Are you saying you lack the courage for this simple task?” he asked Link in his carrying voice. 

“It’s not a matter of courage,” Link said. “My body isn’t up to it. I’m sore all over, and I barely had any sleep.”

“Is that so?” Darunia said. “I wonder… Will Ganondorf offer you some respite were you to give him that same excuse before a battle? What do you think?” After a moment, Link shook his head again. “No, of course not,” Darunia said. “There are many types of strengths, little hero. There is strength of the body and strength of the spirit. When one is lacking, the other must compensate. Bear the pain and danger to come meet me, or you may as well turn around and leave my mountain.”

Link considered that option briefly, and Navi--seeming to read his mind--thudded him sharply on the head with her small body. 

Link winced, rubbed his head, and winced again when the action shifted his sore shoulders. “Okay…” Link dropped his hand and sighed as he looked out over the crevasse. Many of the stone columns were a fair distance apart. None were too far to jump, yet it was the exertion of the act itself that Link was dreading. He chanced another look at Darunia’s stormy face, gritted his teeth, and took a few steps back. He shifted the toes of a boot against the rock, testing its traction. Once he was sure he wasn’t going to slip and fall on his face, he ran to the edge of the crevasse and leapt through the air to the first stone column within reach. 

Link hit hard, rolled, and felt his body swing out into empty space. With a gasp, he flailed his arms and managed to get a grip on the edge of the column. He hung there by his fingers over the side, panting in fear, while Navi flew frantic circles above the column. 

“You must time your jumps and speed better!” Darunia called. “Pull yourself up, Link!”

“Easier said than done,” Link gasped. His shoulders were singing in pain.

“Do not waste energy talking! Pull yourself up, lad! I will not help you!”

Link cast a startled look back over his shoulder. From his low vantage point, the angle was enough for him to just see Darunia’s head. The Goron looked serious about his claim. Link couldn’t believe it. He could very well fall and die, and Darunia was just going to stand there! 

_Fine,_ Link thought with stubborn determination. _I’ll show him. I’ll show him I don’t need his help._

Navi was bobbing up and down; side to side; circling and diving only to rise again. But she stilled in the air when she saw Link start to pull himself up over the edge of the column. Hanging by his fingers, it was hard for Link to raise his body up enough to get an arm over the edge. Neither of his arms was strong; in particular the right one’s strength was nearly used up. Nevertheless, when Link put his mind to the task he found he had the inner strength to lift his body. Perhaps it was the motivation of a messy death below, or something deeper--the spiritual strength Darunia had spoke of. In either case, Link was able to pull himself up and get his left arm over the edge. With some of his weight now atop the column it was easier for him to pull the rest of his body up onto the column’s flat top. There he finally collapsed onto his back and took a few breaths to calm his racing heart. 

“Get up, Link!” Darunia was quick to urge. “We do not have all morning, and your enemies will not allow you any time to recover. No breaks, no pauses!”

Link gritted his teeth. Navi was already encouraging him, so he forced himself to his feet and looked to the next column. He recalled Darunia’s advice about timing the jumps and speed, and when he leapt to the column his feet stuck the landing, and he staggered forward only an inch or so. He had barely straightened up from regaining his balance when Darunia urged him forward again. 

The pattern repeated itself over and over, with Link jumping and Darunia pressing him to move faster. Link forgot about the pain in his body. He had no concentration to spare when all his mind could think was, _Don’t fall._ When he did finally reach Darunia, he discovered his sore muscles had limbered up some and no longer pained him as much. 

Darunia was off at once, retracing Link’s path over the columns in reverse with the agility of a mountain goat. He reached the ledge in half a minute and from there beckoned for Link to follow. 

“Wha…” Link cut off his protests. _Open your eyes and shut your mouth._ Under Navi’s eager but gentle encouragement, Link put aside his tiredness and returned to the ledge where Darunia waited. He was quicker on the return trip and on surer footing. He was a little more familiar now with how much speed was required to cross certain distances, and he reached the ledge in half the time he had taken to first traverse the expanse. 

Darunia nodded when Link stopped before him. “Good,” he praised. Link managed a smile before leaning forward over his knees to gasp for breath. “We need to work on your stamina,” Darunia noted. “Your strength too. Come, Link. There is more training ahead for you, but first you must be properly equipped to endure it.”

Link raised his head. “Can’t I--”

“No,” Darunia cut in. “Follow me.” The Goron Elder hurried off, running instead of rolling so that Link had a chance to keep up. Even so, the Hylian lagged. He was already feeling the harsh results of his training, and it was barely into the first hour. 

_Some hero I’m going to be,_ Link thought as he disappeared into the depths of Goron City.

#

Zelda stared down at the Triforce that was lit upon the back of her right hand. It was resonating faintly, and she wondered what could be causing the reaction. Its light looked almost… pained. Weak. Was this a result of her feelings? Zelda doubted it. No matter how grim things appeared at the moment, she was confident that somehow, someway, a ray of hope would shine on her dying kingdom and force away the darkness that choked it. So what was causing the reaction? 

Zelda decided to try to find out. She had the Triforce of Wisdom, after all. She raised her hand to her chest and concentrated on the power she could feel within her. She sent out a silent prayer, and the Triforce on her hand glowed brighter. 

The world slipped away. Zelda was falling through blackness. She flailed, frightened, but already that blackness was receding. It didn’t go entirely away. Wherever Zelda now found herself, it was a naturally dim place. She sensed someone running on stumbling feet, and although she couldn’t see anyone, she recognized that someone’s life force. 

_Link!_

#

Link staggered to a stop. A thought like a bolt to the head had just come to him. For some strange reason, he saw Zelda’s face as clear as day in his mind even though he wasn’t thinking on her. Link groaned and raised a hand to his eyes. Something powerful was sitting over him; he’d never felt anything like it. In the dim darkness of the tunnel where he stood, his left hand blazed out in gold. 

Navi saw the light, and she bobbed frantically to catch Link’s attention. By the time he dropped his hand and looked at her, the gold light had faded. 

“What is it?” Link asked Navi. The fairy was flying back and forth, sometimes knocking against Link’s hand. “I’m sorry, Navi,” Link apologized. “But I don’t speak chaotic fairy sign language.” 

Navi’s wings drooped, and she sunk miserably to Link’s shoulder as the Hylian pushed himself away from the wall he had leaned against. He felt different now. It was as if remembering Zelda’s face had given him new drive. He had a job to do. He had to gain the strength to save Hyrule. “Come on, Navi,” Link said, and he began to hurry along the tunnel at a better pace than before. “I can’t let little things like exhaustion or pain slow me down, right?” 

Navi seconded this mindset with a cheery twitch of her wings, and she set off to lead Link through the tunnels after Darunia. 

#

The dim world faded from Zelda’s sight and was replaced by the tower room that had become her cell. She sagged with slight disappointment, but she should have known it wouldn’t be so easy to escape. Yet something cheered her. The Triforce on the back of her hand was stronger, and there was another thought that had stuck in her mind like a thorn: _Link._ She had sensed him alive and well, there was no doubt about that. Yet why him? Why not someone like Impa? Could this mean that Link…

Zelda looked again at the back of her hand. The Triforce had faded away, but she could still sense its power pulsing within her. Zelda closed her eyes, and a smile pulled at her lips. “Link is alive,” she said aloud, and saying the words solidified this belief. “He’s alive.”

On the other side of Zelda’s closed door, Darcel drew his ear back from the frame with a jolt of surprise. Link? _Alive?_ If such was true… Darcel decided. He slipped down the tower stairs. 

Ganondorf was perusing a map when Darcel entered his chambers. Lines crossed the map at various angles, marking off territories and plans of conquest. Ganondorf’s finger continued to trace them while Darcel spoke, telling him of what he’d overheard the princess say. Once Darcel had finished, Ganondorf raised his head and remarked, “So something useful finally comes out of all the sulking you do by the princess’s door.”

Darcel bristled at the remark. “I could be more useful if you’d give me something to do,” he pointed out. “What was all of my training for if I’m condemned to wander these empty halls?”

Ganondorf knew Darcel was right. He also knew he couldn’t break his promise to Link--especially now, when Vaati had nearly finished the lad off. If Darcel became more engaged, he had more chance of crossing one of Vaati’s bad moods.

But was Link truly alive? Ganondorf gestured towards the room’s corners, and out of the shadows appeared numerous pairs of eyes. “Find the Hylian,” Ganondorf ordered his minions. “Find Link. I want to know if he is alive or not. Search the river and lake for his body. If it’s not there, expand your search to the provinces. I want an answer by nightfall.”

The monsters dispersed in an instant, and Darcel and Ganondorf were alone once more. Darcel was still waiting for Ganondorf’s answer, but the Gerudo refocused his attention on his map. “Let us see what comes out of the search,” Ganondorf eventually said. “Then we’ll decide on a plan of action.”

It was not the answer Darcel was looking for, and he made his disappointment clear by drawing out the sword on his back and plunging it straight down into Ganondorf’s map. The blade sliced through as easily as a knife through soft butter. Ganondorf raised his head in surprise. Darcel’s ruby eyes glared back at him.

The Gerudo’s surprise soured into irritation. “Patience!” he snapped. He reached out and removed the sword to hand it hilt first to Darcel. “You will get a job. I will give you an area to lord over to your heart’s content. Then at the very least you can stop brooding over Zelda. But I first want to know what we’re dealing with beyond this castle’s walls.”

Darcel’s eyes darkened, and he asked, “What are you afraid of out there?”

“I’m not afraid of anything,” Ganondorf assured him. “But remember, the Triforce of Courage is out there somewhere. And whoever holds it is not on our side.”

#

The special weave of the red tunic and hat that was granted to Link protected him from the harsh heat of Death Mountain’s volcanic crater. His boots shielded his feet from the hard, hot rock, and his gauntlets took much of the brunt of anything he grabbed. Unfortunately, none of this protection could make up for Link’s lagging strength as he attempted to scale a sheer cliff. Below him, a lake of lava promised a nasty death that not even the Goron tunic he wore would prevent. Link had no safety rope. He had minimal foot and hand holds. But he was told to scale the wall to retrieve a certain stone near its top, and he was going to do it. 

The sky above the open crater was dimming with the end of the day. For hours, Link had engaged in numerous exercises, all designed to push his stamina and strength to their limits--and beyond. His body now ached with the pains from all of that effort, but it was a good sort of ache. It was the ache of weakened muscles that were learning new ways to grow. 

On a narrow ledge below, Darunia looked up and called to Link, “Are you there yet, little hero?”

Link had learned early that day that it was foolish to waste energy on anything that wouldn’t help him achieve his goals. So he didn’t answer Darunia and instead looked up to where Navi was hovering by a knot of rock. Within the knot was a small ruby. Link climbed another two feet and drew within reach of the ruby. It was hard to work the stone free. A rock sliced through his gauntlet to cut his palm when his foot slipped, forcing him to quickly take hold of a sharp outcropping. 

_“Link!”_ Darunia called. 

Again, Link ignored Darunia and re-stabilized himself against the rock. He resumed freeing the small ruby. It was stuck in a crack, but some back-and-forth shifting freed it. Link raised it against the crater’s firelight and watched it sparkle. “Got it,” he whispered.

The rock beneath Link’s braced foot crumbled, and he plummeted. Navi froze in mid-air and dove straight down after him while Darunia cried out in alarm. But neither could help Link as they were, so he had to help himself. He shot an arm out and caught a lucky hold on a ledge of rock. The sudden halt of his falling body nearly ripped his grip off of the rock, but he managed to maintain his hold. He only suffered a sharp blow of pain when his side swung into the rock wall. 

Link now hung by one hand three-fourths of the way down the cliff. As Darunia looked on, Link found first one toehold, and another. After pocketing the ruby he took hold of more rock in his free hand. Carefully, Link worked his way down the cliff face, and after a few tense minutes the soles of his boots touched down onto solid ground.

Darunia swept Link into a tight embrace. “You did it, little hero!” the Goron elder exclaimed while he shook Link from side to side. “You got a Goron ruby!”

“You’re welcome!” Link gasped through the pain of the tight hug. Sensing his discomfort, Darunia placed Link back on his feet. Link took out the small ruby--no bigger than a robin’s egg--and handed it over to the Goron Elder. “Why do you need this so badly?” Link asked.

Darunia held the ruby up to examine its color against the fading light of the sky. “This, little hero, is the heart of every Goron.”

Link frowned and shook his head. “I don’t understand.”

“You will,” Darunia promised. “In a few days it will be Birth Day, and you will understand then. But now… more training! I am only joking!” Darunia added with a booming laugh when Link tensed in alarm and fear. “You have worked hard all day, little hero. You deserve your rest now. Come, I will take you to the hot springs where we Gorons relax after a long day. The water is good for soothing muscles and healing wounds.”

Link looked over the numerous cuts in his clothes under which scratches bled. “Yeah, I could use that,” he said with his own laugh. Darunia cast him a smile and patted Link gently on the back. Gently, however, was different for a Goron, and Link nearly caved under the hand. 

The hot springs were located near the top of the mountain. An array of pools fed by a small waterfall was situated outside of a tunnel entrance above Goron City. The heat of the lava in Death Mountain Crater kept the water at a warm temperature, and the minerals in the rocks surrounding the pools gave them therapeutic properties. 

When Link and Darunia emerged from the tunnel, Link found there were already a few Gorons basking in the pools’ depths. They looked relaxed, and Link was eager to join them. He walked up to the edge of a deep pool and pulled off his hat before working his shirt up and over his head. His sore muscles protested, but he ignored them. His head popped free of the rough Goron tunic with a crackle of static. He dropped it to the ground to join his hat.

Link froze. Looking idly across the pool, his eyes had caught sight of his reflection in the waterfall. It was a shadowy representation of him. It flickered at the edges against the falling water. Looking at it, Link was reminded of his twin brother Darcel. 

_I have no brother._

Link’s muscles twitched at the memory of hitting the surface of the moat. His throat constricted when he remembered the choking water. His chest throbbed with phantom pain at the reminder of the sword that had nearly killed him. 

Darunia was already in the water, chatting easily with his fellow Gorons. One of them pointed out Link, who stood paralyzed by the pool’s edge, his blue gaze fixed on the waterfall. “Link!” Darunia called.

Link didn’t hear him. His mind was elsewhere. His breaths shortened and quickened. The reflection in the water appeared to twitch with its own life. It was waiting for him. It wanted to finish what it and its fellow shadows had failed to do in the moat. Link was convinced of this to his very core. He was going to die if he entered that pool.

One of the Gorons closest to Link climbed out of the pool and approached him. “Link,” the Goron called, and he tapped Link on a shoulder. “What is the matter? Why do you look so pale? Come into the pool and relax.”

Link jerked out of his daze with a scream. _“No!”_ His voice echoed sharply against the rock. It was still rebounding when Link retreated back into the tunnel. 

Darunia found Link some moments later by following the echoes of soft gasps in the tunnel network. When they grew to their loudest, the Goron Elder came upon Link cowering in an alcove with his knees drawn up and his arms circled around them. His blue gaze was distant with panic when they focused on Darunia. 

“Don’t make me go into the water,” Link pleaded in a shaking voice. “They’re waiting for me in there.”

“Who is waiting for you?” Darunia asked, but no matter how many times he put the question to Link, the Hylian only shook his head and hid his fear-stricken face. 

#

Powered by its wide wings, a lone keese worked its way towards the distant dark castle that had replaced Hyrule Castle’s white walls. It was heading for an open window backlit by firelight. It had news for its master Ganondorf. It had found the Hylian Link. Hanging from an outcropping of rock on Death Mountain, the keese had witnessed the Hylian emerge from a tunnel only to flee back into it moments later. Although the sighting was brief, the keese had seen enough to know Link was alive. It didn’t consider whether Ganondorf would be pleased with this information or not. It only knew it was given a job, and had succeeded in it. 

Where once stone birds perched upon finely crafted ledges, dark misshaped gargoyles roosted in frozen displays, drenched in shadow. The keese darted over one such shadowed shape and it came alive, shooting an arm up and catching the keese in a tight grip. The keese was yanked down, screeching in terror. 

“Hush,” Vaati soothed. He stroked along the monster’s furry body with a sharp thumbnail. The nail dug in, producing a bead of blood from the keese, and it screeched in pain along with terror. Vaati released the monster. It staggered in the air, regained stability with a few frantic beats of its wings, and carried on towards the open window through which it swiftly disappeared. 

Vaati sucked the bead of blood into his mouth and sat for a moment, sampling the iron taste of it on his thumb. He could see what the keese saw on Death Mountain, and the confirmation of Link’s survival hardened the Wind Mage’s red gaze. However, something gave him some pleasure. Link’s reaction to deep water… That was interesting. 

“So the child feels fear,” Vaati murmured around his thumb. “Hmmm… We might be able to use this.”

#

After six days of hard training, Link was feeling anything but tired and weak. He felt _strong._ It was an amazing feeling considering he was on the verge of death not too long ago. Hours of training and endurance exercises no longer exhausted him by the day’s end. Now he went to bed on the rock-hard ground and slept soundly, eager to begin a new day’s work come morning. His body still suffered--his skin was littered with cuts and bruises--but the pain was always distant in the wake of the exhilaration of finally wrestling a Goron to the ground, or the satisfaction of bearing a heavy load to the top of a steep mountain pass. 

“Your progress is astounding!” Darunia remarked on the evening of Link’s sixth day in the Goron City. The two were seated with numerous other Gorons, enjoying their end-of-day meal. Link had sucked down two bowls of soup and was on his third. His appetite rivaled the Gorons’ now. “By the end of your second week, you will be almost indistinguishable from us Gorons, I guarantee it! All you will need is a rock shell!”

The Gorons laughed and cheered, clapping their heavy hands and making the city echo with their mirth. 

Link grinned and barely bowed his back when Darunia ruffled his hat and hair with a powerful palm. After fixing his hat, Link finished his third bowl of soup and asked, “What are the plans for tomorrow? Am I going to fight a dodongo next?”

The Gorons laughed again, and Orin called from across the crowd, “You are not that much of a Goron yet!”

Darunia shook his head while his fellow Gorons continued laughing. “No, Link, there will be no training tomorrow,” Darunia said. The Gorons stilled and seemed to lean in towards him, attentive and quiet. 

Link looked around, startled by the sudden change, before turning to Darunia and asking, “Why not?”

“Tomorrow is Birth Day,” Darunia explained.

Link gasped. “Oh yeah! Shade mentioned something like that! …What is it?”

Darunia reached behind him and plucked something off of his rocky back. It was the ruby Link had retrieved days earlier. Around the city, a few other Gorons pulled out similar rubies. They glimmered in the torchlight like miniature red stars. “The heart of the Goron City is the Spiritual Stone of Fire--the Goron’s Ruby,” Darunia explained. “We passed it onto the Royal Family years ago during a time of need when the wars raged across Hyrule. But that is hardly the only ruby in Death Mountain. Among the stones and minerals we Gorons mine out of the rock, we value the rubies above all others. You see, little hero…” Darunia held the ruby out before Link’s eyes. “This is the heart of every Goron.”

“You said that before,” Link noted, and Darunia nodded. “So you’re saying that there’s a ruby heart beating inside every Goron?”

“To an extent,” Darunia said with another nod. “There is power within these stones, Link. Energy. _Life force._ And coupled with the mighty power of our mother mountain, that life force can lead to an astounding birth.” The Goron Elder noted Link’s continued confusion, and he smiled as he ruffled Link’s hair again. “You will understand soon, little hero. For now, fill up and then rest up. Tomorrow will be an eventful day.”

#

The following morning, Link was rudely awakened in the morning by the pounding of many drums. Link bolted out of sleep and staggered to his feet. His blue eyes snapped around the room, looking for danger. What he found instead were many Gorons dancing and hurrying to and fro in time to the music.

“Birth Day!” one Goron exclaimed, and he snatched Link’s hand in a powerful grip. With a yell, Link was yanked out into the heart of the city where Gorons lined the ledges and staircases, all of them dancing to the drums being beat throughout the city. Even Biggoron--the city’s largest resident--could be heard dancing in his mountaintop residence. His large footfalls underlined the more powerful rhythm of the numerous Gorons that thrummed through the stone. 

Even over the cacophony, Link heard his name being called by Darunia. He looked down over a rope fence to see the Goron Elder beckoning him to the bottom floor. Link took a shortcut: he slid, jumped, and rolled down the levels’ edges, suffering a few cuts, but barely noticing them. He stumbled to a halt beside Darunia, and at the Elder’s indication Link joined a band of Goron musicians who were the source of much of the noise. He was handed a drum and taught a simple beat to bang out. He was encouraged to drum as loud as possible, and he did as told with enthusiasm. 

The music soon gave way to food: gourmet rocks for the Gorons, and an elaborate dish of fruits and grains for Link. He would need the energy from the food, Darunia assured him. Birth Day was a day-long celebration. Music and dancing was first. It energized the Gorons and limbered them up. The Gorons with the rubies would especially need to be ready, for they were the ones who would have to make the climb up to the very top of Death Mountain. 

This was an important ritual with dark roots. Link listened, enraptured, to the old tales of how Death Mountain in its younger days was a far less forgiving place to live. The paths to the top of the mountain were hard and difficult, and many of the Gorons would perish along the way when they fell. The volcanic mountain was far more active in the past; swells of lava would occasionally claim a Goron who wandered too close to the crater’s edge. But after so many eons the mountain was calmer, and the path to its peak was now well-worn and climbable. A Goron had not died on the journey in over ten generations.

“However, it may still be treacherous for a soft Hylian like you,” Darunia noted kindly. “So you may stay with the spectators, if you like.”

Link shook his head. “No, I’d like to see the ceremony in full, if you’d have me.”

“Then you are welcome to come along.”

After more dancing and a midday meal, the Gorons filed out of the city in excited groups. Those Gorons with the rubies--six of them including Darunia--left together and took a different path once outside, heading up along Death Mountain’s towering side. Link went with them, following alongside the last Goron in the group; a youngish Goron named Topan-goro. 

Link was warned that the path was dangerous. Not only was there loose rock, but tektites and the occasional bombchu made their homes in the hollows and crevices along the trail. Gorons could handle these monsters easily; their rock bodies made them immune to most attacks. Even the blast of a bombchu’s tail wasn’t fatal so long as the monsters didn’t get too close. Link, however, was still just a Hylian, so he took his shield and sword along with him. 

The climb was several hours of tentative steps and easing along narrow ledges. The occasional wide span of path allowed the Gorons and Link to rest for a few moments to regain their strength and ease their trembling muscles. After the rest, it was back to the hike; groping for handholds, and inching along with stomachs pressed against rough rock walls. The peak steadily drew closer, and new energy seemed to travel between the Gorons with every curve rounded. They were growing nearer and nearer to the top. The path down would be a lot easier, Link was assured. The trial was nearly over. 

The bombchu appeared with a shifting of pebbles. It stuck its head out from a hole in the rock wall right in front of Link and Topan, who was in line behind the Hylian. Link froze with a gasp when the bombchu chattered curiously at him. It emerged in full, moving quickly over the rough rock wall with its clinging claws. It headed straight for Link and Topan on a suicidal mission to eliminate them from its territory. 

“Watch out!” Topan exclaimed in fear. At this range, even a Goron could be hurt by a bombchu’s blast. 

Link did the only thing he could think to do against such a monster. Any fatal attack would set off its bomb-rigged tail, so he took out his sword and swung the flat of the blade at the monster. The bombchu was batted off of the wall and high up into the air with a screech of surprise. Link watched it shoot up to make sure it didn’t come straight back down. If it did, he was prepared to bat it out over the edge of the path. 

The bombchu never came down--not in one piece, at least. Before it crested in its rise towards the sky, the bombchu twisted in mid-air and slammed its bomb-rigged tail into the rock wall.

An explosion ripped the air, and the path trembled violently. Debris loosened from the above wall began to rain down on the path over Link and Topan. Link saw Darunia’s startled eyes snap back towards him before everything was obscured in the landslide’s brown dust. Thuds indicated each falling stone in the dust cloud. Link crouched down on the path he could no longer see, pulled his shield up over his head, and tried to make himself as small as possible so as to avoid injury. He could feel Navi, hidden in his collar, trembling against his neck. He whispered reassurances to her--and to himself--over the noise of the landslide.

The noise and dust eventually faded, although it felt like an eternity in an uncertain hell; at any moment, Link expected a rock to fall and finish him. When he stood up in the cleared air he found the path before him mostly clear and intact; only a few small rocks peppered it. Darunia and the other four Gorons were peering curiously at Link from a small distance up the path. He waved cheerily at them to show them he was okay before he turned back to address Topan. 

What Link saw first froze his heart before kicking it into overdrive. Topan was splayed out on the path, looking very dead. Link hurried to Topan’s side and found a pulse beneath the Goron’s hard skin. “He’s alive!” Link called over his shoulder to Darunia and the others. He turned forward again and set to waking Topan. 

The Goron came around slowly under Link’s urgent shakes and gentle slaps. He sat up and rubbed a hand over his head. “That hurt!” 

“You’re okay!” Link said, thrilled by the news. Topan nodded, but he frowned down at his feet. 

Link followed his gaze to find a grave discovery. An enormous boulder had fallen onto the path, and it now had both of Topan’s feet trapped beneath it. “He’s pinned,” Link whispered with dread. He stood up and called to Darunia. “Topan is pinned! He needs help!” But rather than rush forward to offer aid, the Gorons shifted uncomfortably. “What’s wrong with you?” Link asked them.

Darunia spoke in a dull voice, “On this day, on this path, no Goron may help another Goron. Each must make the journey on his own.”

“But he could _die!”_ Link argued.

“We cannot go against this rule, Link,” said another of the Gorons. “To do so would be to cast aside our traditions--to cast aside what makes us Gorons.”

“But… But…” Link looked from one Goron to another, astonished by the attitude they were presenting to him now. “But what about unity?” Link said desperately. “The strength of the body and the spirit. Constancy--dependability! These are traits Gorons value above all others! To be strong alone, but also to be strong as a whole--a group! To be able to rely upon one another and offer strength!” 

Unease flickered over the Gorons’ faces, but still they made no move towards Topan. Instead, they turned and continued up the path. 

“Fine!” Link snapped at their retreating backs. “Then _I’ll_ help him! I’m not a Goron! I’m not bound by tradition!”

The boulder was even larger up close when Link stepped over Topan’s pinned legs and up to its side. It would be difficult for even a Goron to move, but Link didn’t let this deter him. He braced his feet against the path and shoved hard with his shoulder. What he was attempting was impossible; he tried nonetheless. He pushed and shoved. His boot heels slipped again and again, but he righted himself and continued each time. The boulder never moved, but Link wasn’t giving up. 

Topan tried to help, but his girth (“Too many rock sirloins,” he lamented) prevented him from leaning forward enough to help Link to push. The most he could do was attempt to wiggle his feet out from beneath the stone. They were trapped in a narrow space between the stone and the path. There wasn’t enough room for him to turn his feet to free them, and the path beneath was solid rock, so there was no hope of shifting it to create more room. 

But Topan cheered Link on, and with the Goron’s gentle encouragement, Link found the strength to keep trying. Even Navi emerged to circle Link, reassuring him with her presence. She attempted once to batter herself against the boulder. This had no effect except to briefly stun her. Link caught her before she could fall over the edge, tucked her into his collar, and continued pushing. He was tiring, and something had sprung in his lower back that made every push feel like torture, but he was determined not to give up until he dropped dead from exhaustion.

Topan eventually called for Link’s attention. “Listen!” the Goron urged. 

Link paused in his efforts and tried to still his heavy breaths. He could hear a dull roar from below. Carefully, he maneuvered himself close to the edge of the path and leaned out to gaze down. Scattered on various ledges and outcrops were the Gorons who were watching the climb, and they were chanting. Calls of “Link, Link!” and “Little hero!” traveled up the mountain. Link heard cheers and claps. He heard drums being pounded in beat to the chanting. The Hylian was filled with new energy and pride. He returned to double his efforts against the boulder while the cheers and chants swelled louder and louder, echoing off of the mountainside. 

Topan was cheering Link on with his fellow Gorons when he was stunned to silence by the reappearance of Darunia and the other four Gorons. Link raised his head from where it was bowed in effort against the stone, and he smiled in weary relief when the five Gorons added their strength to the boulder. 

_“Heave!”_ Darunia commanded, and at his prompt the Gorons and Link shoved with all of their might. What one could not do alone, six did in moments. The rock shifted, tipped, and tumbled down the mountainside to the rousing cheers of the Gorons below. 

Link collapsed against the rock wall with a pained gasp. While he collected his breath and tried to still the tremble in his limbs, Darunia and the other Gorons checked Topan over for injuries. 

“Forgive us, Brother, for abandoning you in your time of need,” Darunia said to Topan with a solemn bow of his head. 

“It is okay, Brother!” Topan returned happily to Darunia and his fellow Gorons. “You only acted as you thought you should! I do not hold it against you!”

Link smiled at the touching scene when the Gorons embraced each other in their trademark bone-crushing hugs. His eyes were drawn to Darunia when the Elder stepped up to stand before Link. The two regarded each other; Link with a curious expression, and Darunia with an unreadable one. 

Darunia indicated the path with a nod of his head. “Come, Link. There is still a bit of a climb.” To the others he added, “Brothers! We continue onward as one from now on!”

The cheers faded away as the Gorons and Link carried on with their climb. A quarter-hour later, a tunnel mouth appeared at the top of the path. One by one the group filed in, coming out onto a ring-shaped ledge of rock near the top of Death Mountain Crater. Far below, the lava pool gurgled and spurt under a haze of steam. The Gorons fanned out along the stone ring with Link sticking close to Darunia’s side. 

As one, the Gorons held out their rubies over the edge and released them on a silent command. Link watched the rubies spin downward, catching the light in red flashes, before they sunk into the lava. 

Darunia grabbed hold of Link’s arm, and everyone was suddenly moving quickly. Link was dragged to one of several round holes carved into the interior of the mountain. They were stone chutes smoothed out from countless generations of Gorons who had taken the very same paths down the mountain for countless Birth Days. Link was yanked into one such chute, and he disappeared into the cool darkness with a cry of surprise. In front of him, he could hear Darunia sliding along the rock, laughing in the wake of the exhilaration. Link tried to relax--obviously this was a route proven to be safe--and he managed his own laugh before he and Darunia slid out into bright sunlight. 

They were back amongst the other Gorons near the entrance to Goron City. The spectators cheered their returning Brothers as they emerged out of other chutes, and numerous hugs were passed between them. Link managed to keep his sore body out of the crushing embraces.

Death Mountain shook with a powerful tremble. Smoke belched out from its top, adding to the ring of smoky clouds that always circled the peak. In response, the Gorons dropped to their knees and began to pound on the ground. This was no rapid pulse of a dance. The Gorons’ hands fell against the mountain in synchronized double beats; almost like a heartbeat. And that heartbeat grew faster as the mountain continued to shake and tremble around them. 

On his knees beside Darunia, Link added his weaker pounds to the rest until the ground jerked beneath him with a sharp crack of sound. Link looked up at the peak of Death Mountain and saw small rocks being jettisoned out of it--six in total. They spun through the air and arched down towards the Gorons. Somehow--Link doubted it was chance--one of each of the rocks landed before each of the six Gorons who had climbed the mountain. 

Link flinched back when a rock landed in front of Darunia. The Goron Elder barely twitched. Instead, he reached out and took hold of the rock in both hands. It was shaped as an oval with a rocky side and a wrinkled side. The wrinkles moved, and to Link’s amazement they unfolded into limbs. Darunia turned over the rock when it began to cry, and Link realized the rock was a small Goron. Around him, five other similar cries rose up over the gathered Gorons. 

“Happy Birth Day, little goro,” Darunia said to the young Goron in his arms. The child stopped crying and opened his eyes, looking almost startled to find a similar face staring back at him. 

“What’s his name?” Link asked as around him the other Gorons huddled to welcome their new Brothers.

“That will come with time,” Darunia said. “It is not wise to rush such an important thing as a name.” Link nodded in silent agreement and joined Darunia when the Goron Elder stood up with the young Goron in his arms. 

“Brothers!” Darunia called, and his fellow Gorons quieted. “Today is a successful Birth Day! We have six new Brothers!” The Gorons cheered in response. “However,” Darunia continued when his people had quieted. “We would have had only five--and in addition would have lost another--if it was not for Link! He showed us that there is more to being a Goron than long-held traditions! Our values as a proud people--as a strong, united group--are far more important! My only regret is that it took a soft Hylian to teach us rock-hard Gorons such an obvious lesson!”

The Gorons laughed and cheered, and Link smiled self-consciously. He only hoped they wouldn’t start hugging him. He wasn’t sure if his sprung back would handle it. It hurt simply to stand, but he hid his pain so as to not worry those Gorons who looked warmly upon him.

“So this is what I say!” Darunia picked up. “I say, why stop with six new brothers? Today we gain a seventh! My Goron Brothers, I name this little Hylian hero of ours: Brother Link!”

Link didn’t quite grasp Darunia’s words until he was lifted up onto the shoulders of two Gorons and paraded through the crowd like a king. Only when the Gorons started to call him “Brother” did he break into a smile. They carried him into the city amongst renewed music, dancing, and feasting that lasted the rest of the day and well into the night. 

The new, young Gorons were passed from Brother to Brother. They were well-developed for children, standing at half of Link’s height, and with the ability to speak Hylian fluently. Link didn’t attempt to understand the magic behind such a remarkable miracle. He sat off to the side to rest his back, and watched the Gorons celebrate. 

Eventually, one of the children wandered over to Link. Link arched an eyebrow when the Goron simply looked on at him. Link recognized this Goron as Darunia’s new son. “Hello, little goro,” Link greeted in a tired voice. 

The young Goron didn’t speak, but he did walk up to Link and drop down beside him. The child leaned his body against Link’s left side and promptly fell into sleep. His soft snores lulled Link faster towards his own sleep, and in moments his eyelids fell shut, and his chin dropped to his chest.


	11. A Show of Power

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As a final test of strength, Darunia tasks Link to enter the Fire Temple and retrieve the Megaton Hammer from its shrine. Yet an unexpected test awaits Link, armed with fire.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the last proper Goron chapter. I hope you are all still enjoying this story!
> 
> Feedback and kudos are always welcomed, thank you!

# In the Shade of a Hero

### A Show of Power

Link had gained a second shadow.

It was not in his shape. It was different; about half his height, with a rock-hard body and curious eyes. This shadow talked. It watched Link from the sidelines as he went through vigorous hours-long training exercises with Darunia, who just happened to be the shadow’s father. The shadow had no name yet. It was a Goron, and Gorons were not known for speediness outside of rolling races; the gaining of a name was no exception to this rule. Instead, Gorons were better known for their strength, and their ability to weather hardship and endure. Link was quickly developing those same qualities. 

Little goro--as the young Goron who shadowed Link was called--was also developing. Yet in ways he was weaker than Link. So when Link, on his last day of training, was told to enter the Fire Temple and collect a fabled weapon, little goro followed; hoping to be strong like the Hylian he admired. 

Darunia--with his son sitting beside him, playing with small toys--met Link in his meditation chamber before the start of the trial. For a moment, Darunia studied Link with pride. Sitting cross-legged on the mat, the Hylian’s posture was straight, and his shoulders were square. The round shield on his back was dented and scratched from his training, but like its owner the shield had endured the hardships. Link’s body was stained with the occasional bruise, and scratches marred his finger tips where his worn-down gauntlets failed to protect him. But beneath the cuts and bruises, strong muscles had developed almost supernaturally fast. 

Darunia had a hunch part of the reason behind the rapid development lay in the power hidden within Link. Shade had told the Goron Elder of the Triforce piece. Because Link didn’t know of it--for his own safety--the Hylian attributed the fast development to Darunia’s good teachings. 

Darunia completed his examination of Link and smiled at the Hylian. “You have grown strong, Link, and I am proud you are a Brother to us Gorons, for you represent us well as you sit there,” the Goron Elder said. 

At the praise, Link’s disciplined expression faded into a smile of his own. 

“But there is one more task for you to accomplish before I am prepared to say your training is complete,” Darunia continued. “You will enter the Fire Temple, which is a sanctuary of peace and personal meditation for my people. Once, when the temple was under the control of Hylians during the great wars, it was a dangerous prison--and in many ways it still is dangerous. The paths within are old and fraught with natural dangers. Your task is to walk into that danger and collect from a shrine the fabled weapon of the ancient hero: the Megaton Hammer. With that weapon, the ancient hero once smote the fearsome Volvagia, a dragon of terrible fury… that had a strong appetite for Gorons.” 

Link chuckled, and Darunia smiled wider before finishing, “The shrine is located in Volvagia’s old nest. Collect the hammer and bring it back, and your training will be complete.”

Link nodded and stood up; Darunia rose to his feet as well. Little goro ceased playing with his toys to look up at both of them. “I want to go!” the young Goron said.

Both Link and Darunia shook their heads, and Darunia said, “No, little goro. You are too young, and you are not strong enough. When you have grown up a little more then you may enter the Fire Temple alone.”

“I want to go!” little goro repeated. 

Darunia ignored his son’s pleas as he turned and stepped aside so that Link could approach the Goron statue in the room. A secret entrance to the Fire Temple lay behind the statue. 

“Brother Link, take me with you!” little goro insisted. “Then I will not be alone, and I can go in!”

Link cast the young Goron a gentle but firm smile. “No, little goro. Stay here, okay? We’ll play after I come back with the hammer.”

“Brother--!” Little goro attempted to protest once more.

Link shook his head again and patted the young Goron on the shoulder. It pained him to deny little goro any request, but it was for the child’s safety. “I won’t be long,” Link promised. 

Little goro reluctantly stepped back to his father’s side and watched Link brace a shoulder against the Goron statue to push it away from the hidden entrance. It shifted aside with ease under his strength. Once it was clear of the door, Link waved to Darunia and little goro and entered the exposed tunnel. He was going into the Fire Temple entirely alone. Not even Navi would be accompanying him.

“Come, little goro,” Darunia said to his son. “I will play with you until Brother Link returns.” 

Little goro bowed his head and followed his father out of the room to the center of the city. There, the young Goron gasped. “I forgot my toys!” he told his father. 

“Go get them then,” Darunia said, and little goro ran off; back into the room he and his father had just left. The young Goron had barely disappeared into the room when a few Gorons surrounded Darunia, asking him about Link. In his eagerness to tell them of his faith in the Hylian to collect the fabled hammer, Darunia never noticed his son’s failure to return from the room.

#

Darunia had certainly not lied. As Link descended the ladder into the Fire Temple, he could feel the heat of the place increase with each rung his hands and boots found. Fortunately, he still had his Goron tunic and hat. Both were a little ragged and worn from his days of training on Death Mountain in extreme conditions, but their tough weave protected the Hylian from the dangers of heat exhaustion well enough. It was the lava he had to worry about. And falling stone. And crumbling paths. And--

_“Brother Link!”_

Link jerked his head up, and with a gasp he dove to the side. A second later, a small boulder crashed down and landed where the Hylian was once standing. The boulder unfolded itself and stood up to greet Link with a cheery smile. 

“Little goro!” Link gasped as he stood up. The young Goron’s smile faded when Link walked up to him, furious. “Go back!” the Hylian ordered in a stern tone. “It isn’t safe for you to be here alone!”

“But I am not alone as long as I am with you!” little goro pointed out. “Please let me go with you, Brother Link! I can help you!”

“I’m supposed to do this alone,” Link argued.

“But you taught me Brothers are supposed to stick together!” little goro insisted. Link groaned and ran a hand over his face. _“Please,_ Brother Link!”

Link dropped his hand with a sigh. “Fine,” he agreed in a defeated tone. “I’d rather have you in sight than wandering around alone.” Little goro cheered, and Link sighed again, heavily. “Come on, little goro. You must keep up. I’d rather not linger in here.”

“Of course, Brother!” little goro said, and with a determined expression worthy of a hero he took up position beside Link to walk alongside him into the Fire Temple’s depths.

The way was treacherous, just as Darunia had promised. Eruptions had crumbled walls and paths, sometimes narrowing them to a stretch of stone barely the width of a foot. Link crossed one such path carefully, placing one boot in front of the other while holding his arms straight out at his sides to maintain balance. Upon reaching a wider stretch of stone at the end of the narrow path, he paused and turned back to see how little goro was doing. 

The young Goron hadn’t yet stepped onto the narrow path. He still stood on the far side, eyeing it warily and shaking in fear. 

“Come on, Brother!” Link called in an encouraging tone. “You can do it! Just put one foot in front of the other. Keep your eyes open!” Link added quickly. Little goro had shut his eyes before swinging a foot out, but now the young Goron snapped his eyes open and stumbled back from the path. “You need to keep your eyes open to maintain your balance,” Link said to him. “It’s okay… Good… Keep coming…” 

Step by step, the young Goron crossed the narrow stone path and joined Link on the other side, where he took a moment to collect his breath. 

“Scary, huh?” Link remarked with a small laugh.

Little goro sucked in a deep breath, held it, and shook his head from side to side. “No, I was not scared, Brother!” the young Goron insisted. “I had you looking out for me!” 

Link laughed again, for he could see little goro’s knees were still trembling. He cast the young Goron a warm smile and indicated with a nod of his head that they should continue moving. 

After another quarter-hour’s walk, Link and little goro came to a large, iron door set into a high wall of stone. Link took a moment to study the door before saying, “I think this is it.” He knelt down to hook his fingers beneath the door. With a grunt of effort Link forced the door up, and from within the walls came the sound of chains and counterweights creaking with years-old rust. The door floated up to disappear into the stone, and Link and little goro were able to continue into what was once Volvagia’s nest.

“You have gotten very strong, Brother!” little goro complimented. He and Link approached an outcropping that overlooked a circular plateau of heated rock. “A week ago you would not have been able to lift such a door!”

“Yeah?” Link smiled at his young friend. “I guess I have gotten a little stronger.”

“You will need that strength, Brother!” little goro continued. “The Megaton Hammer is a mighty weapon that even a Goron has difficulty using!”

“Yeah?” Link repeated with less confidence. His smile dropped into a worried expression. He had grown a lot stronger over the last two weeks, but was he as strong as a Goron? Would he be able to lift the Megaton Hammer? _Being able to carry out the hammer must be the test Darunia had planned all along,_ Link thought. 

Approaching the end of the outcropping, Link swung a hand back towards little goro, who was following along behind him. “Stay here, Brother,” Link said to him. “I’m going to get the hammer, and then we can return back to Goron City. I’m sure your father is worried about you by now.” Little goro dropped his eyes in shame, but Link cheered him up with a gentle pat on the head. “Don’t worry. I’ll be sure to tell Darunia that you were very brave, and that I was glad to have you along.” 

The young Goron raised his eyes, looking cheered, and Link again motioned for him to wait before he began to descend to the plateau below. The way down was a convenient stair hewn out of the rock; meant to be a safe passage down to the shrine for visitors. Link was happy to have it, for he wasn’t sure if he would be able to spare a hand for climbing once he had the hammer. 

The plateau constantly shook with the activity of the volcano and surrounding lava, and the air seared. Link felt the heat bake through his boots, and he had to cover his mouth with a hand when the air thickened with stifling smoke. _Better make this quick,_ he thought. Not for the first time, he wished he was more like a Goron not only in strength, but also in the ability to endure such harsh conditions. 

With eyes watering, Link approached a flat table of stone that sat in the middle of the plateau. Etched into the stone was an inscription, but most of the words were faded from the years, and Link couldn’t make out the style of the clearer words’ lettering. He guessed well enough what the hammer was that sat upon the stone. Its large head shined as if it was just forged, and the iron handle was clear of any rust. This was the Megaton Hammer, and it was obviously a weapon of ancient power to have survived the passing of the ages in such pristine condition. 

Link reached for the hammer, and at once a column of red light shot down from the opening in the chamber’s high ceiling. He staggered back from the force of the light when it hit the table, and from behind him he heard little goro cry out in alarm. A powerful wind swept out from the column of light. It tugged at Link’s clothes, and brushed his hair back from his wide eyes, which were fixed on the table in a stunned look of shock. There was a figure within the column of light. It looked like a woman. Link felt he had seen her before, long ago, on a plaque that was crafted in memory of his father.

_“Din?”_ Link gasped. He cried out the next moment when a sharp image entered his mind. There was something beneath the rock…

_Descendant of the ancient hero, please accept this trial._

The rock jolted beneath Link’s feet, and cracks appeared in the center of the plateau. Link’s startled eyes shifted from the column of light to watch a clawed foot force its way through the cracks like a chick breaking through an egg.

_Forgive us._

The red light and strong wind faded, and the woman along with it. Now there was a constant tremble in the ground. A roar sounded from below the bed of flat rock. A long snout ending in a sharp beak emerged from the widening hole in the plateau, and a plume of fire sprouted from it. Clever eyes appeared next; sharp horns; a snake-like body covered in stony scales. 

_“Brother Link!”_ little goro shouted from high up on the outcropping. 

The dragon that was now fully emerged-- _Volvagia!_ Link’s paralyzed mind cried in warning--roared again, emitting a second plume of fire. The flames left a portion of the room’s stone walls black and soft from the heat. It wasn’t long before Volvagia set its sights upon the young Goron.

Link acted on instinct. He seized the Megaton Hammer by its iron staff and hefted it off of the stone table. It was as heavy as he was led to believe; he had to use both hands to lift it effectively. 

Volvagia was rearing its head back, lining little goro in its sights. The young Goron was paralyzed in fear. He wasn’t going to move before Volvagia struck. That meant Link had to give him time to move. Cocking the hammer over his shoulder, Link sped towards Volvagia’s tail and brought the hammer’s head down hard on it. 

The mouthful of fire Volvagia was preparing to launch at little goro escaped the dragon in a surprised burst of embers. With a screeching roar, Volvagia turned its attention to Link. He was forced to drop the hammer’s head to the ground in order to free a hand for his shield. 

Volvagia sent a renewed stream of fire at Link, and he crouched down behind the round shield to avoid the fiery death. The heat was intense, and Link saw the edges of the shield begin to glow red and droop as the metal softened. Link shot a look towards the outcropping and shouted at little goro, “Run now, while I have Volvagia distracted!”

Little goro shook his round head. “No, Brother! I will help you!” And to Link’s horror the young Goron started to descend the stone stairs.

_“No!”_

Volvagia’s head whipped back around towards the young Goron, and with a roar the dragon flung its tail at him. The blow hit the stone stairs below little goro, obliterating them in a shower of stone and dust. The young Goron’s feet scrambled for a hold on what was now just loose rock before he pulled himself back up onto the outcropping and stumbled away from the edge. 

Volvagia prepared to attack little goro again, but Link once more distracted the dragon with a firm blow to its tail. Volvagia whipped back around; its roar was more angry than pained. It launched itself at Link, and the Hylian raised his warped shield to ward off a blow of the dragon’s horns. He retaliated with a quick blow of his hammer before Volvagia could draw away. The dragon screeched in pain when the Megaton Hammer cracked against its reinforced skull. 

“That is it, Brother Link!” little goro called from the outcropping. “Aim for Volvagia’s head!”

“Little goro, get _out_ of here!” Link shouted between warding off blows and fire. He wasn’t sure how long he could keep Volvagia occupied. Eventually, the dragon would grow weary of failing to reach Link behind his shield, and it would set its sights once more on the far more vulnerable little goro. “Come on, you ugly snake,” Link goaded, and he hit Volvagia again with the hammer in a rare opening. 

The dragon jerked out from beneath the hammer, reared back with a roar, and whipped its body around in agony; its clawed hands clenched tight upon its fractured, armored head. Link decided it was a good time to attempt to escape. He shouldered his shield and took up the hammer in both hands; cocking it over his other shoulder so that he could run with the least amount of drag slowing him down. 

Volvagia’s thrashing tail swept Link’s feet out from beneath him, and he fell hard to the ground. The Megaton Hammer flew out of his hands and skidded to the edge of the plateau where it came to a rest. Link was on his feet in an instant. He was running to retrieve the weapon when he felt a clawed hand snatch him around his knees. With a cry, he was yanked up to hang upside down in Volvagia’s tight grip. The dragon opened its mouth in preparation to burn its snagged prey into a crisp. 

Link knew raising his shield was pointless. It wasn’t big enough to protect his entire body, and he couldn’t crouch behind it while suspended. He braced himself for the onslaught of fire, hoping that by some impossible chance his Goron tunic would protect him entirely from the flames. 

The flames were collecting at the back of Volvagia’s open mouth when a small, blackish-brown missile sailed through the air and hit the dragon in the side of the head. Volvagia’s fiery breath died in an indignant grunt, and it whipped its head around in time to receive another blow, this time to an eye. The dragon screeched and dropped Link, who landed hard but unharmed on the plateau. 

“Take _that!”_ a voice shouted, and Link raised his head to see little goro throw another rock at Volvagia. The young Goron’s arms were full of rubble, which was all that was left of the stone stairs. Each hit landed true, and soon Volvagia was once more setting its sights on little goro; recoiling only when a rock deterred it for a half-second. 

Link was grateful for the help, but he had to get little goro out of the temple before the young Goron was killed or eaten. He cast around for the Megaton Hammer; it was still by the lip of the plateau. He scrambled to his feet and bolted for it as Volvagia shifted a few feet closer to little goro. 

Link’s hands wrapped around the hammer’s staff just as Volvagia reared back. Little goro was out of stones, and he stood paralyzed once more. There was no time to close the distance to Volvagia, so Link raised the Megaton Hammer and brought it down hard on the ground. 

A web of cracks raced across the surface of the plateau from the point of contact, and a sharp clang echoed around the chamber. The sound and vibration caught Volvagia’s attention. When it whipped around towards him, Link pointed the hammer’s head at the dragon. “Stay away from my Goron Brother,” the Hylian warned in a voice that was low and threatening. 

Up on the outcropping, little goro caught sight of the hard look in Link’s blue eyes, and he was reminded of the drawings and paintings he was shown when his Brothers had told him of the ancient hero. 

Volvagia growled low and released a plume of fire. Link lowered the hammer in one hand and crouched down behind his shield. Volvagia was unrelenting; the fire poured out continuously. 

Little goro could see Link’s shield was melting. “Brother Link!” he cried again.

_“For the last time, get_ out _of here!”_ Link shouted over the crackle of flames. 

One glance from Link’s hard eyes was enough to finally convince little goro. The young Goron staggered back, hesitated a second more, and shouted, _“I will be back with help!”_ before he rolled away.

Link refocused his attention on Volvagia. The dragon’s fire was thinning out. With a dying sputter, the flames dissipated altogether. Link dropped his shield and spared it a troubled look. It drooped and sagged, and it was burning hot against his forearm, but it was already hardening back into its new warped shape. It would do for a little longer, which Link hoped would be all he needed. “Come on, you stupid dragon,” he snapped at Volvagia. He took a few steps back, his shield up and the Megaton hammer hanging from his left hand. 

Volvagia slipped closer to Link. Its head was only a few feet away from the shield. The dragon uttered a hiss, and smoke curled out from the corners of its mouth. 

Link had a feeling that was for show. Volvagia’s flames were used up. Its beak, claws, and horns, however, were still quite capable of inflicting pain and death. Link tightened his left hand around the Megaton Hammer and prepared to apply every bit of strength he had in swinging it. He would have to use only one hand. He wasn’t going to have time to drop his shield and shift his right hand over once Volvagia was close enough to be hit, and any earlier would tip the dragon off. So he bided his time, shifting back one or two steps every other second, with Volvagia’s head following his progress like a snake following a mouse. When Volvagia’s snout bumped against Link’s shield, the Hylian paused, tense as a wire. The dragon reared back, roared, and darted its head in to snap up Link in its jaws. 

Link was ready. He waited until the last possible moment before using all of his strength to lift the hammer up and over his head in a high arc. Its weight pulled at his shoulder, but the flat head came down on top of Volvagia’s skull with a satisfying crunch of bone. The dragon’s horns were snapped clean off, and a burst of blood signified the substantial damage that was wrought. 

Volvagia uttered a tortured screech and threw the hammer off in a violent thrash. Link’s balance was upset, and he staggered back before dropping to the ground in a very pratfall which Shade once warned him of. He stared, mouth agape, as Volvagia whipped its entire body from side to side; crashing against the walls, and roiling the sea of lava around the plateau with its thrashing tail. 

When chunks of stone began to fall and break apart on the plateau, Link decided it was time to leave. He stood up with his shield shouldered and the hammer in both hands, and he ran for the outcropping of rock. He would have to climb up the crumbled remains of the stairs--a difficult task alone given the Megaton Hammer’s weight; near impossible with conditions literally falling apart around him. 

Link had to try regardless. He grappled for purchase with one hand while the other kept a firm hold on the weapon as he climbed. It never crossed Link’s mind to drop the hammer to make the job of saving himself easier. He was tasked with retrieving it, and he was going to carry that task out. 

Volvagia’s thrashing was growing less and less. Blood and bits of bone dropped from the dragon’s head where it had its claws clutched in agony. It was blinded with pain, but it wasn’t yet ready to give up on finishing its assailant. Volvagia’s tail repeatedly lashed towards Link with blows that grew weaker each time. He dodged them and climbed higher to reach for the edge of the outcropping. A final thrash of Volvagia’s tail eliminated the edge, and Link ducked down to cower in the stone rain that fell upon him. At his back, Volvagia slipped down beneath the lava with a last piteous roar. 

Link cautiously raised his head and shook debris from his hat and hair. Was the dragon truly dead? Or was it only trying to lure Link into a false sense of security? Link decided it didn’t matter. He was leaving now. He straightened up and reached for a ledge, but one no longer existed above him. With a curse, Link cast around and saw a portion of the ledge was still intact a bit to his left. He shifted a boot and reached out for it. 

A tremor rocked the chamber, and the weakened stone beneath Link’s feet shook apart. He began to slide down towards the lava amongst a rain of debris, but he quickly turned the hammer in his hand and buried its claw into the rock wall. The hammer snagged in a crack, and Link came to a jolting stop halfway to the lava. 

Yet his troubles weren’t over. Something was disturbing the lava beneath him. Perhaps Volvagia was attempting to bring Link down with this final assault by turning the very environment against him. The lava started to boil and spurt up, rising steadily. It soon swept over the plateau and buried it completely in a burning sea. Link saw ripples spread across the lava, and he sought out cover in desperation. But he was exposed on the rock wall, and no such cover existed. 

_So make your own,_ an inner voice suggested to Link amidst his panic. That voice was strong and cool-headed in the wake of this heated danger. It was the voice of the hero Link felt he would never become. 

_But I won’t know for sure what I’ll ever be capable of if I die here._ Link thought. On the heels of this, an idea came to him. He braced his boots in a crack, raised the Megaton Hammer in both of his hands, and began to strike it against the stone wall. The rock broke apart in large chunks, and soon a man-sized hollow was carved out. 

As the wave of lava rose up, Link slipped into the hollow and braced his shield against its edges, forming a makeshift door. He pulled harder to ensure a tight seal, and he was knocked back against the inside of the hollow when the lava fell against the rock wall in a trembling wave of heat and power. The shield hissed and glowed red with heat within the darkness of the hollow. Link felt his head grow light as the air temperature rose. He shook himself back into consciousness and listened as the lava slipped away. 

The red glow died from the shield, but Link gave it a few minutes more to cool down. He breathed shallowly and didn’t move; conserving what little oxygen he had within the hollow. When the stifled air grew almost unbearable, Link reached out and tentatively brushed his fingertips against the shield. It was warm to the touch, but not intolerably hot. He turned his body as best he could within the small space and braced a shoulder against the shield to pop it out.

The shield barely trembled under Link’s push. He shoved with all of the strength he could spare, but nothing worked to loosen the shield. Link blindly felt along the edges of the shield and discovered the metal had melted into the stone under the lava’s onslaught. 

Desperate, Link next tried to maneuver the Megaton Hammer into position to strike it against the shield, yet this proved impossible within the small space of the hollow. Link began to panic. He pushed against the shield. He threw all of his weight against it, and braced his legs as well as he could against the walls of the hollow to push harder. Nothing worked, and soon the minimal oxygen took its toll. Link sagged against the wall of the hollow, and his eyes drifted closed. 

#

Darunia was searching for little goro when he heard his son’s frantic cries. Desperate shouts of _“Dad!”_ echoed through the city, and little goro staggered out of his father’s meditation chamber and into the Goron Elder’s very arms. 

“Little goro!” Darunia exclaimed. His face dropped into a scolding scowl. “Where have you been? I was looking everywhere for you!”

“Dad, Brother Link is in trouble!” little goro exclaimed, and his father stilled. “Volvagia is attacking him--”

Darunia relaxed with a sudden booming laugh. Those Gorons who were standing around him, watching with curious expressions, also laughed. “Volvagia is long dead!” the Goron Elder assured his son. 

_“No it is not!”_ little goro shouted with such frightened conviction that everyone’s laughter died. “There was a light--a red light that shot down from the sky! There was a lady in the light!”

“Din.” Darunia sucked in a sudden breath, remembering what Shade had told him in their private discussion before an oblivious Link.

_The Triforce has been broken by Ganondorf. The boy was marked in the aftermath--he bears the Triforce of Courage. The Goddesses granted him this power, but they’ll likely test him to see if he’s worthy of it. Keep an eye on him for me. He isn’t a hero yet._

Little goro was crying now. His tears fell like giant pearls to the ground where they lay in shimmering pools. “The lady woke Volvagia up,” the young Goron sobbed. “Brother Link is fighting it now.”

Darunia wasted no more time. “Brothers, to the Fire Temple!” he commanded, pointing out three of his fellow Gorons. They nodded and rushed after him towards the tunnel entrance. Little goro made to follow them, but another Goron held him back. Together they stared after the rescue party with expressions of ill ease. 

#

The shrine within the Fire Temple was quiet and still. The lava had retreated, revealing the plateau of rock once again. Darunia marked the distinct spider web of cracks on the plateau and recognized the pattern as having resulted from a blow of the Megaton Hammer. But where was the hammer? More importantly, where were Link and Volvagia? A quick glance over the visible area hadn’t revealed anything; everything appeared normal. The Gorons were now edging along the lava pool in search for evidence of what might have occurred. 

Orin found the first and only sign of Volvagia. He called to his Brothers, and they rushed over while Darunia kept a lookout. They studied what Orin had found: the hornless, scorched husk of a crushed dragon skull, washed up on the stony edge of the lava pool. “Volvagia is dead!” Orin shouted to Darunia. 

“But where is Link?” the Goron Elder called with concern furrowing his brow. “Did he perish in the lava as well?”

“This skull was crushed by the Megaton Hammer!” another Goron named Ambron-goro deduced. “Brother Link _must_ be alive if he struck the killing blow!” Encouraged by this reasoning, the Gorons once more fanned out in search of some sign of Link. They soon came across such a sign: a shield melted into the stone wall under the outcropping. 

“Break it free, Brothers!” Darunia urged, and the Gorons hammered away at the stone with their fists. In short time, the shield peeled away from the wall, and Link’s limp form tumbled out of the hollow after it; his hand still clutched around the Megaton Hammer. Ambron caught him, and Orin seized the shield and hammer. 

“We found him!” Orin called up before adding, “He does not look well!” 

The Gorons ascended the rock wall with Link carried between them. Even with their hands helping to support the Hylian, they still had an easier time climbing than Link had during the battle, and they reached Darunia in moments. The Goron Elder studied Link’s ashen face, and with a silent gesture he urged his Brothers to hurry back to Goron City.

#

A searing pain in his right forearm jerked Link out of what felt like an eternity of dark sleep. With a sharp cry, he flinched back from whatever was attacking him. His mind filled with images of burning flames and a scaly dragon looking to crush him in its jaws. What he saw instead was a Goron with a warm, smiling face. The Goron was attempting to apply a salve to Link’s skin, for his outer forearm was burnt red and raw. 

“Your shield,” the Goron explained when Link only stared. “It must have burned you when Volvagia heated it with fire. You did not notice?”

“I… The shield…” Link shook his head to clear some of his confusion. “Little goro. I was trying to protect him. Did he get out okay? _Is he all right?”_

“Link-goro is fine and whole,” the nameless Goron replied. 

“Wh- _who?_ No, I mean--”

“Rest, Brother,” the Goron pleaded. He could see Link was still confused and weak from his trial. With a steady hand he eased the Hylian back down against the soft mat he was laid upon. “You are injured and exhausted from your battle,” the Goron said, and he resumed applying the salve to Link’s burn. “Rest and regain your strength.”

Despite his worry for little-goro, Link allowed his eyes to slip closed. The burning pain in his arm fell back into darkness, and for a while he felt nothing, heard nothing, and bit by bit regained his strength. He came around again a few hours later, close to dusk, to find a welcome sight sitting by his bed. 

“Little goro!” Link greeted, and he sat up in order to throw his uninjured arm around the young Goron’s shoulders. “I’m so glad you’re safe,” Link said when they parted.

The young Goron beamed at Link. “I am not little goro anymore, Brother Link! I have chosen a new name for myself! I am now Link-goro!”

“What?” Link couldn’t help but chuckle at the young Goron’s words. “Little goro, I don’t think your father would approve. Don’t you want a good, strong name worthy of a Goron Elder’s son?”

A deep voice spoke up before the young Goron could reply. “Link-goro is a strong name worthy of any Goron, and most of all worthy of one I call my son.” 

Link turned his head and watched Darunia walk into sight. The Goron Elder took a seat by his son and rubbed the young Goron’s head in a loving gesture. He turned a look of equal admiration onto Link, who could only bow his head to hide the shamed blush that rose to his cheeks. 

“Why do you lower your head, Link?” Darunia asked in a puzzled voice.

“It’s my fault little… Link-goro was put into danger,” Link explained. “I should have insisted he return to you, Elder Darunia. I should have led him back before continuing into the Fire Temple. I placed him in peril and--”

“And you got him back out of it,” Darunia finished. Link cautiously raised his gaze to find Darunia smiling widely. “You can blame Link-goro’s stubbornness on yourself--he has certainly followed you enough this past week to develop that quality of yours. But do not place other unnecessary blame on your shoulders. You single-handedly defeated what could have become a great threat to my people--and the rest of Hyrule as well. You risked your life to protect my only son, and you used your head to escape danger when others would have fallen. You showed true courage, Link, which is why I now consider you my Sworn Brother.” Darunia bent his upper body towards Link in a solemn bow. 

_“Sworn…?”_ Link shook his head. Sworn Brother was the highest title of honor amongst Gorons--right alongside Elder. “I can’t accept that --” Link began.

“You have more than earned it,” Darunia insisted when he straightened up. His stern expression was unyielding on this matter. “Not only for your bravery today, but also for the sacrifices you have given over the course of your strength training, and for your efforts to show us Gorons that we must value our ties to each other far more than any outdated rituals. Link, my Sworn Brother and Brother to all Gorons, you have the makings of a true hero!” 

Darunia smiled and patted Link on the head, although in his enthusiasm he was a little rougher than usual, and Link’s back bowed slightly. “You can be sure Shade will be receiving a fine report on your progress!” the Goron Elder added. 

Link laughed and pushed the large hand up and off of his head. His blonde hair was disheveled, but he hardly noticed. He simply gave his head a shake and smiled wider. 

#

Shade could feel the energy buzzing in Goron City when he entered it. The very walls seemed to vibrate with music and conversation. Foot by foot, the swordsman descended the circular paths to the bottom heart of the city. There, he came across a group of Gorons crowded around Darunia, all of them talking excitedly. 

“Good morning, Brother Darunia,” Shade greeted with a bow. 

“Greetings, Brother Shade!” Darunia boomed in a cheery voice. “I have so much to tell you--”

_“Shade!”_

A lithe form in a ragged red tunic, limbs supple with newfound strength, bounded down the slopes and stairs to the bottom level of the city before coming to a staggering stop a few feet in front of Shade. “You’re back!” Link exclaimed with an energetic smile. 

Shade did a once-over, noting a bruise on an exposed shoulder blade, a cut on the young man’s cheek, and--most alarming of all--a bandage wrapped tightly around the right forearm. 

Before further words could be passed, Link was buried under three young Gorons who tumbled down the slope in his wake and tackled him from behind. Rather than flee or cry out in alarm, Link fell to the ground under the three heavy bodies with a breathless laugh. The Goron children latched onto him like leeches. It seemed to be some sort of game of strength--a game Link was winning as he forced himself up to his hands and knees and began to crawl slowly towards Shade, dragging the three young Gorons. 

“I’m… so glad… to see… you…” Link grunted between pulls. He collapsed under the weight at that point and shared a laugh with the young Gorons. 

Shade turned back to Darunia. “Where is the hesitant, weak-willed child I left here? Surely this isn’t Link.”

Darunia and the Gorons laughed as one, and Shade turned back to his apprentice to see the young Gorons were releasing him. 

Link stood up, shook his head once, and faced Shade with a straight back. But again, greetings were interrupted when one of the young Gorons ran forward and announced to Shade, “Link is _not_ weak! He is a Goron hero! He scaled a rock wall for a Goron ruby!” 

The other two children voiced _Oohs_ of admiration. 

“He saved Topan’s life on the path up Death Mountain!” 

_Aaahs_ echoed next, this time extending to some of the seated Gorons. 

“He smote the evil Volvagia in a one-on-one battle--just like the ancient hero of legend!” 

Shade cast a quick look at Link, who bowed his head to hide the self-conscious blush on his cheeks. 

The young Goron took another step forward and pointed at himself with a firm thumb. “For Link’s courage, I have named myself Link-goro, son of Elder Darunia, and proud Brother to my father’s Sworn Brother Link!” Link-goro’s two friends cheered, and a few of the Goron adults added their own applause and cheers. 

_“Sworn Brother?”_ Shade murmured to Link under the noise of the admiration. 

Link raised his head, the self-conscious blush still on his face. “Um… _A lot_ has happened in the past two weeks.”

Shade felt a heavy hand fall on his shoulder, and he turned his head back to find Darunia standing behind him. “Come, Brother,” Darunia said. “There are some things I need to discuss with you. You _have_ missed a lot these past two weeks.” 

Shade turned to follow Darunia into his meditation chamber, but not before adding to Link, “Say your goodbyes. We’ll be leaving once I’m done.” 

Link nodded and watched his mentor disappear into the chamber. The next moment, he was on his knees before the three young Gorons. Others emerged from the watching crowd until there were six in total. They stood before Link in a close half-circle, all of them wearing the same somber expressions. 

“Don’t look so glum, Brothers,” Link said with a warm smile. “This isn’t really goodbye. It’s just a… a short farewell. I’ll be back, and when I do come back, I want to see the progress you’ve all made into becoming fine, strong Gorons.”

“Do you have to go?” Link-goro asked with a pout. 

“I’m afraid so,” Link confirmed, nodding. “If I don’t leave, I’ll get into trouble with Shade. You don’t want me to get into trouble, do you?” The young Gorons all shook their heads. “Well then, I have to go.”

“But other trouble is waiting for you out there,” Link-goro said next. “Dad says you are going to fight Ganondorf.”

“You could _die,”_ Jad, Topan’s son, added. He could only manage a fearful whisper at the utterance of such an outcome. His fellows echoed the same worries.

Link tried not to let such thoughts enter his head. “Hey, listen,” he said in an effort to cheer up the young Gorons. “I took on _Volvagia_ \--the great, hot-headed, Goron-eating dragon. Some stupid man of the desert will be nothing compared to _that.”_

This worked to brighten the Gorons’ moods, and smiles came back to their faces. Cheered by their expressions, Link straightened up and began to move amongst the rest of the Gorons, shaking hands and saying farewells. Even the shy Navi emerged to cast out silent goodbyes; although once Shade emerged from Darunia’s chambers, the fairy ducked back into Link’s collar. 

“Your belongings?” Shade prompted Link. A Goron passed Link his traveling bags, his sheathed sword, and his shield. Final goodbyes were exchanged, and Shade and Link started the climb up the path to the city’s exit.

Shade’s eyebrows arched when he noticed the damaged condition of the shield that Link carried. “Isn’t that my shield? Boy, what in the Goddesses’ names were you thinking, taking that dragon on alone? Any sane man would have turned and fled while he still had the chance.”

“I wasn’t given much of a choice,” Link said. “The Goddess Din--”

“Yes, Darunia told me.”

“Why would Din test me, Shade?” Link asked. “Why are so many convinced I can become a great hero? What sets me apart from everyone-- _anyone_ \--else?” 

“Clearly something, if these Gorons look up to you now as a Sworn Brother.” This answer didn’t seem to satisfy Link’s troubled mind, so Shade added, reluctantly, “There is something about you, Link. But you’re not ready to know what that is yet.”

“What?” Link’s eyes widened. “Something about me? What are you trying to say?”

“Don’t think on it now,” Shade said in a tone of finality that cut short any of Link’s questions. “You’ll know when you’re ready. Now let’s head back. Epona has been near-intolerable without you around to calm her. She nearly bit my nose off the other day…” 

The last of Link’s agitation melted into a smile as he listened to the account of the near de-nosing, and in an easy air the swordsman and his apprentice walked out into the welcoming sunlight to begin the journey back to the Lost Woods.


	12. A Troubling Wind

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Link returns to the Lost Woods alongside Shade, and there he is forced to face his lagging courage.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for your support!
> 
> Please enjoy this chapter, thank you!

# In the Shade of a Hero

### A Troubling Wind

Link emerged into sunlight, and a whinny immediately met his ears. With a smile on his face he looked towards the sound to find Epona tied to a low fence beside Shade’s borrowed horse. Link laughed and ran over to the mare. “Epona!” he greeted with enthusiasm, and he untied the mare so that she could move freely. “Were you a bad horse for Shade? Good girl, good girl…” Link broke off into laughter when Epona nuzzled his hair. 

“I heard that,” Shade grumbled good-naturedly. He swung up onto his own horse. “Come on. Mount up, and let’s get off this rock.”

Link swung up into his saddle and marked Shade’s horse with curiosity. “You’re using that old mare again? What’s wrong with Daisy?”

“Daze,” Shade corrected tersely, and Link smirked. “My horse’s name is Daze.”

“Not according to Saria.”

“Well Saria isn’t the one who has to ride around on a horse named Daisy.” Shade spurred the mare, and Link fell in behind him. The two horses started to maneuver the Death Mountain trail. “Daze doesn’t like it up here,” Shade explained. “She refuses to set foot anywhere beyond Kakariko Village’s borders. There isn’t enough grass on the mountain for her.”

“And you say _my_ horse is stubborn.”

“As well as a poor judge of character, given whom she’s taken to.”

“I suppose there’s no hope in thinking you missed me these past two weeks.”

“Of course I have. The Kokiri are too small to beat up.”

Link laughed and flexed a well-toned arm. “You’ll find it a little harder to beat me up now. I might just show _you_ a thing or two.”

“We’ll see,” Shade said, unimpressed, and Link dropped his arm with a sigh.

Kakariko Village came into sight within the hour, and Link cheered up at the sight of structures that weren’t hewn out of rock. “Can we check in on Impa?” he asked Shade as the gate grew closer. Shade shook his head. “Why not?” Link asked. “You didn’t let me see her on the way through, either.”

“That’s because she wasn’t there,” Shade explained. “And she isn’t here at the moment. She spends much of her days split between building the village for its growing population and seeking out a way to rescue Zelda. She is trying to find out the origins of Ganondorf’s sorcery, as well as a way to defeat that Wind Mage.”

Link felt a stab of guilt. “I should be helping her,” he said. “Not wasting time with the Gorons.”

“You are not wasting time,” Shade said, and he cast an earnest look back at Link. “Zelda will keep. It’s your job to get strong enough to save Hyrule. Trust me, Link. I will not allow you any time to waste.”

Shade’s teasing was enough to cheer Link up somewhat. “All right, if you say so.” he relented. 

Shade and Link continued on into Kakariko Village, through it, and down the pass to Hyrule Field. Once there, Shade pulled his mare up short and dismounted by the tall tree that stood near the start of the pass. “Let’s take a break,” the swordsman suggested. Link nodded and dismounted as well. “Here,” Shade called, and he tossed an empty canteen into Link’s startled hands before nodding towards the Zora River. “Fill my canteen for me.”

Link glanced at the river and tossed the canteen back at Shade with a laugh. “Do it yourself!”

With a hard look, Shade walked over to Link and forced the canteen back into the Hylian’s hands. “That wasn’t a request, it was an order.” Link bowed his head in shame, and Shade walked away to tend to his horse. When he heard footsteps on stone, he whipped his head back around to see Link just stepping onto the pass to return to Kakariko Village. “Where are you going?” Shade snapped.

Link stopped and turned to Shade with a faint smile. “I’m going to fill your canteen.”

“There’s a river right there,” Shade said, needlessly pointing out Zora River. 

Link spared the river another brief glance. “You don’t want that water.”

“Yes, I do.”

“But the well water in Kakariko is a lot better--”

“I don’t care. I want river water.”

“We’re not even an hour’s journey from the Lost Woods. Do you really need--”

_“Fill my canteen!”_

Link flinched under the force of Shade’s shout, and his fingers tightened spasmodically against the rough weave of the fabric which overlaid the canteen’s metal shell. After a moment’s hesitation, he walked stiff-legged towards the Zora River. 

Shade marked each step with a careful eye while Link approached the river. The Hylian reached the edge, and after a half-minute’s contemplation of the flowing water he tossed the canteen back with a sharp snap of his wrist. 

“I’m not your errand boy.”

Link heard a sword being drawn, and he spun around in time to bring up the warped shield between himself and Shade’s blade, which fell upon the metal with a dull clang. Link felt himself pushed back towards the water under the force of his master, who was applying nearly all of his power onto the sword. “Shade--”

“Do you think brute strength will be enough?” Shade asked. One of Link’s braced boots slipped on the wet shore of the river, and he lost ground. His eyes pleaded to Shade from behind his shield. “It’s not enough,” Shade continued. He pressed harder, and Link bowed back. A little more power would send him teetering back into the water. “You need more than physical strength. If it was enough, you wouldn’t be distracted by fear and struggling to push me back right now.”

“Shade, please--” Link attempted again to plead, but Shade pushed harder. Link lost his footing when he was bent back further towards the river. With a cry, he tumbled into the water and disappeared beneath its surface. He reappeared almost at once with a gasp. 

Shade stepped back to allow Link room to clamber back onto shore. The young Hylian clutched desperately at the grass and dirt with hooked fingers, and pulled himself up onto firm ground. There he huddled on his knees, soaked to his skin and trembling violently. His Goron tunic was a deep red, giving it the appearance of being soaked in blood. He had lost his shield upon hitting the water. Shade didn’t bother to retrieve it. 

“So Darunia was right,” the swordsman remarked. “You seem to have a problem with deep water.”

“I do _not,”_ Link snapped in an acid tone that was lessened by the shake in his voice. “The water is cold.”

Shade scoffed, but did not address the obvious lie. “Get changed. Then we’ll continue on.”

Link swapped out his wet clothes for a change of fresh Kokiri wear. His boots were still soaked, but he could do nothing about them at the moment, so he bared the squishy footwear as he mounted up on Epona. The ride back to the Lost Woods with Shade was a quiet one, and Link was relieved to return to the energy of the Kokiri Forest. His friends here had not seen him in two weeks, and they were enthusiastic. 

The smells of a warm welcoming meal soon permeated the air of the village, and as music picked up in the background, Link told those who would listen of the challenges he had faced on Death Mountain. The Kokiri marveled at the story of Volvagia. Link was forced to tell it over and over as word spread of his deeds, and more Kokiri gathered to hear the tale. 

Shade, sitting off to the side, was barely listening to the story he had already heard. He attempted to light a hand-rolled cigarette until Saria sat down beside him. 

“I don’t think the Great Deku Tree would approve,” the Kokiri girl chided gently.

Shade grunted and gave up. He pocketed the cigarette for a time when he wasn’t being watched by a forest deity, and sighed. “We have a problem,” he murmured to Saria in a voice that would not carry to Link’s ears. 

Saria managed a thin smile. “Because the ones we already have aren’t enough? What is it now?”

Shade nodded towards his charge. “The boy is afraid of water--deep water. Darunia told me about it today, but I had to see for myself. So I pushed Link into the Zora River.”

Saria snorted a laugh and quickly covered her mouth. “You didn’t. Oh, Shade…”

Shade wasn’t laughing. His eyes were fixed on Link, who at the moment looked completely free of worry and fear. “You should have seen him, Saria. He was as white as a ghost when he came scrambling out of that river. He was trembling so hard, I thought he’d shake apart.”

“He nearly drowned, Shade,” Saria reminded the swordsman. “He was stabbed clean through and tossed into a moat. That must have traumatized him.”

“He needs to get over it,” Shade said. Saria sighed and shook her head. “It’s a weakness, Saria--one our enemies will exploit should they catch wind of it.”

“What reason does anyone have to consider Link an enemy?” Saria reasoned. “No one knows about… _you know.”_

“There are eyes everywhere,” Shade reminded her. “Ganondorf has all manner of ill creatures at his disposal. Therefore, we have to assume that he knows what Link is up to, and that he believes there’s an active force working to overthrow his rule. We have to assume there are spies watching the boy’s every move. We have to assume his weaknesses are known, and that our enemy is already preparing to use them against him.”

“You’re paranoid,” Saria grumbled. Shade offered no rebuttal. “So what are you going to do?” the Kokiri asked next. 

“I’ll send him to the Zoras,” Shade replied. 

“But you just said Link is afraid of deep water. He’ll have to cross the river to reach the Zora kingdom.”

“He won’t cross the river,” Shade said. “That’s what I’m counting on.”

“Shade, you’re not making any sense.”

“Don’t worry about it, Saria. I have a plan. In the meantime, I think I’ll allow Link a few days’ rest. He deserves it for the effort he’s put out in the last two weeks.”

“Did he really smite Volvagia?” Saria asked.

“He really did,” Shade confirmed with a nod.

“Wow,” Saria said with an impressed arch of her eyebrows. “Not bad for a half-hero, huh?” she added, smiling.

“He’s not even half yet,” Shade grumbled. He stood up and stretched. “I’m heading out. I’ll be gone for two or three days. I should return Malon’s horse, I want to scope out the situation in the rest of Hyrule, and I need to make some arrangements. I think I’ll also pick up a dragon-smiting present for our future hero.”

“How sweet,” Saria remarked. “Have fun,” she added when Shade started away. He spared her a wave and vanished to prepare his horses for travel.

#

The wolfos slobbered through its report of Link’s progress from Death Mountain to the Lost Woods in the company of a swordsman named Shade. Ganondorf and Darcel listened to the account with increasing unease before finally sending the monster away once it was finished. 

Darcel was the first to speak. “So the keese was right… He was training up there. But why?”

Ganondorf didn’t know the answer to that question. He had never considered Link as one to take up arms--but perhaps Zelda’s endangered position had changed the Hylian’s mind. “We’ll have to watch him,” Ganondorf said to Darcel.

“No, you have to _eliminate_ him,” Vaati’s voice spoke up, and he emerged from the shadows of the room with a faint gust of wind. His gaze was hard when he approached the table around which Darcel and Ganondorf were gathered. “I told you,” the Wind Mage said, fixing his eyes on the Gerudo. “I _told_ you that Hylian was going to be trouble. You didn’t listen to me, and now he’s in a position to overthrow all of our hard work.”

“One lone Hylian is not enough to overthrow me--even if he’s being strength-trained by Gorons,” Ganondorf said. “Besides…” He shoved a finger towards Vaati’s young face. “If _you_ had done your job properly, we wouldn’t be having this problem.”

“He should not have survived those wounds,” Vaati snarled. “There is something off about that child. How many times must I tell you this before you get it through your thick skull?”

“And how many times must you be reminded to not speak to me with such disrespect?” Ganondorf snapped back. “Unless you have something constructive to add to the situation, I suggest you go find a dark hole to hide in until I need you.”

A tic ran over Vaati’s pale forehead, and in that brief moment Ganondorf saw a hint of the dark presence that lay within the Wind Mage’s mind. 

The hint vanished when Vaati blinked, and a faint smile touched his lips. “The child is afraid of deep water.”

“What?” Ganondorf couldn’t recall any such fear in the Link he knew growing up. “Why would he be? He never was before.”

“Yeah, we went swimming at Lake Hylia all the time as kids,” Darcel added. “It was our favorite place.” He blushed and glared at Ganondorf when the Gerudo looked to him in surprise.

“Hmmm…” Vaati feigned deep thought. “It might have something to do with the fact that I ran him through with a blade and then tossed him into the moat to die… But I’m just guessing. My point is we can use this against the child.”

“Why not kill him straight out?” Darcel rushed to say. He and Ganondorf shared another heated look. 

“Because that _obviously_ didn’t work the last time,” Vaati snarled. He walked over to Darcel and leaned in towards him. “So why not have some fun with the Hylian brat instead? Why not shatter his mind? Then he won’t be a problem even if he were to live a thousand years.”

“We’re not going to do anything right now,” Ganondorf said. Vaati snapped his head around to Ganondorf, and Darcel stared at the Gerudo in some surprise. “We still don’t know what Link is up to,” Ganondorf continued. “If we let him run around a little longer, we might find out about a bigger threat that might be rising up against us. I don’t think Link is going to attempt to take us on single-handedly. He’s probably a small part of a much bigger group. If we kill him, that group will be aware of the fact that we have eyes on them, and they’ll go further into hiding until they’re prepared to strike.”

A burst of high laughter escaped Vaati. “Very good!” he praised Ganondorf in a cynical tone. “That almost sounds plausible. But we all know you’re just trying to protect Link from harm. You harbor a soft spot for the child.”

“I prefer to know the full scope of the playing board before moving my pieces,” Ganondorf said, and Vaati snorted. “We will allow Link to live a little longer. Vaati, these are my orders. Do not go against them.”

“And if I do?” Vaati asked. 

“Then I’ll consider the act one of treason, and I’ll deal with it accordingly.”

Vaati bared a sharp incisor in a challenging grin. “I’d like to see you try,” he purred. “Fine,” he agreed the next moment. “I won’t kill the child--for now. But I’m going to keep an eye on him. And I’m going to have my fun with him.”

“I said--”

“You said,” Vaati cut in, “that Link must be allowed to live. But that doesn’t mean I have to sit back and allow him a carefree life. If we discourage him from taking arms against us now, we’ll save ourselves plenty of headaches later. I’m only looking out for the future of our new world, _King Ganondorf.”_ Vaati bowed mockingly, straightened up, and disappeared in a gust of wind. 

His departure sent missives and maps flitting from off of the table, and Darcel scrambled to collect them. Once the papers were back in place, he turned to study Ganondorf. “Why _are_ you trying to protect Link?”

“I’m not,” Ganondorf snapped. “I simply don’t want to give Vaati too much power. If I allow him to dictate how things are done, he’ll get it into his head that he’s the king of this land.”

“I don’t think Vaati wants to be king,” Darcel said with a shake of his head. “He just likes chaos. He’s in this for the laughs, if anything.” Darcel lowered his eyes to a map and traced the borders of a section of Hyrule. “Let me kill Link.”

Ganondorf shook his head. “You don’t want to kill your brother.”

“He’s not my brother,” Darcel growled, and his eyes flashed. 

Ganondorf’s amusement died off into a frown. “I think you’ve been spending too much time around that Wind Mage.”

“Vaati would let me kill Link,” Darcel countered. “He wouldn’t condemn me to days of walking these halls either.”

“Vaati would relish your despair when you realize you’ve made a terrible mistake by slaying your kin. He does not have your best interests at heart, Darcel.”

“And you do?” Darcel returned bitterly. “I want to play my part,” he persisted when Ganondorf bowed his head. 

Ganondorf sighed and considered the map before him. Every line marked where a skirmish with Hyrule’s natives drew his monsters’ blood. There were few safe places anymore. “I will have an answer for you tomorrow,” he promised Darcel. 

“I’ll be waiting,” Darcel said, and he left the room in the air of one who wasn’t expecting much.

#

Link was growing uneasy in the wake of his mentor’s absence. For two days now Shade was gone from the Lost Woods. Link could remember his mentor’s promise to not allow any time to be wasted, so he could only assume Shade was off doing something important. This thinking didn’t alleviate Link’s restlessness, however. With no partner and no real direction, he could only practice his minimal skills in swordplay against wooden dummies. Shade hadn’t yet taught Link anything substantial in terms of using the blade, but Link felt the least he could do was get used to how it felt and moved in his left hand. 

The Kokiri often watched Link practice, and Saria was usually amongst them. Her gentle presence was like that of an old friend’s, and Link missed her whenever she wasn’t around. During one such absence, Mido called Link’s attention from his training. “Saria is looking for you,” the boss Kokiri explained. 

Link noted the empty place in the crowd where Saria usually sat. “Where is she?” he asked Mido. “Now that I think about it, I haven’t seen her all day.”

“She’s in there,” Mido said, and he pointed towards the hilltop tunnel that led into the deepest, most confusing part of the Lost Woods. “She sent her fairy to me with the message. It sounds like she found something she wants you to see.”

Link sheathed his sword and nodded. “All right. I’ll go meet her.”

None of the Kokiri followed Link up the hill. He studied their faces, and not for the first time wondered what sort of role Saria played amongst them. Even Mido, who was the boss of the village, treated the green-haired Kokiri with the utmost respect; almost as if she was a goddess. 

Link left behind these thoughts when he entered the woods. A few turns around the thick trees brought him to a small clearing filled with sunlight. Saria stood a little beyond the edge of the clearing. She turned and smiled at Link when she heard him approach. Navi flew out of Link’s collar to greet the Kokiri’s pinkish fairy. The two fairies circled and dove around each other as Link and Saria started to walk through the woods. 

“Mido said you wanted to see me,” Link prompted.

“Yes,” Saria said. She looked troubled. “I found something, and I wanted to tell someone right away.” Saria paused to look up and mark the silent, shifting boughs of the trees. “The air in these woods is very strange today.” She lowered her head and sighed. “I would have told Shade, but seeing how he isn’t here I thought I should at least tell you.”

“All right,” Link said as he and Saria came into another clearing. This one featured a deep pool of water set against a submerged stone wall. “What did you find?”

Saria opened her mouth to reply, but at that moment her fairy and Navi dove down and began to frantically weave in front of their partners’ faces. Saria followed the fairies’ paths, gasped, and ducked behind Link. He looked up, tracing her line of sight. He froze when he saw a purple-clad figure standing on the branch of a tree. 

Vaati grinned when he saw angry recognition in Link’s eyes. Laughing, he dropped down to the ground and took up a stance on the edge of the water pool. “Look at you, child,” Vaati said. “Not only did you survive my attempt to end your life, but it also appears you’ve grown stronger. My, my…” 

Vaati walked closer and began to circle Link and Saria. The fairies stayed close to their partners on high alert for any sudden movements from the Wind Mage. “And you have a friend,” Vaati added when he noticed Saria peeking out from behind Link.

Link drew his blade.

Vaati marked the action with a smirk. “Do you know how to use that, child?” 

“Come any closer and I’ll answer your question,” Link threatened. 

Vaati raised his hands to chest height, and crackling dark energy enveloped them. “There’s no need for me to do that,” he said idly. He moved his hands close together, and the energy sparked between his palms. “Not when I can eliminate you from here.”

Link braced himself. He couldn’t block magic, but he wasn’t going to allow it to hit Saria if he could help it. 

Link was too distracted by Vaati to realize Saria was moving. Before he knew what was happening, he was shoved aside by the Kokiri girl just as Vaati launched the magic. Twin balls of light fired towards Saria and joined as one before hitting her squarely in the chest. She had time for one short, cut-off scream before she turned to stone. 

Vaati’s eyes widened as he and Link took in the frozen Kokiri. Saria’s mouth was still open in a scream, and she was balanced upon the balls of her two stone feet. Her fairy had avoided the fate; she now flew around her partner in distressed circles. 

Not a moment later, Vaati began to laugh hysterically. _“She_ protected _you!”_ he managed between cackles, pointing from Saria to Link.

Link tightened his grip on his sword and lunged towards the Wind Mage with a growl, slashing at him. 

Vaati didn’t pull back in time to avoid injury. A last-second shift saved him a greater wound, but Link’s blade cut into his left cheek, narrowly missing his eye and drawing a line of blood. The Wind Mage staggered back with a gasp, and he raised a hand to his cheek. He studied the blood that collected on his fingers with a growing look of rage. 

Link raised his blade again towards Vaati. “Get out of these woods.”

Vaati bared sharp teeth at Link, and with a whirl of his cloak he disappeared into thin air. 

Link relaxed, thinking his troubles were over. He was proven wrong when Vaati’s laughter rang through the air from some unseen source. 

“Let’s have a little fun!” the Wind Mage called, and Link watched the petrified Saria rise up into the air. 

_“No!”_ Link shouted. He ran forward and leapt up, just managing to get a grip on Saria’s feet before the statue was raised out of reach. It moved through the air at a tauntingly slow pace while Vaati continued to laugh. Link tugged at the statue in an attempt to lower it back to the ground, but as he was up in the air himself he could do little to hinder its progress.

“Where to drop her?” Vaati’s voice teased. “Oh, I know!”

Link’s eyes widened. Saria was being directed to the pool of water on the edge of the clearing. Link’s hands loosened with little thought, and he dropped to the ground a few feet from the edge of the water. He was gaining his feet when he heard a splash. Link caught a glimpse of Saria’s head disappearing beneath the surface of the water pool, and his heart dropped as well. 

Vaati’s laughter began to die away. “I’ve made it easy for you!” he taunted in a fading voice. “Just dive in and get her!” The cackles petered off into silence, leaving Link alone by the water’s edge.

#

Shade noticed the tense air of the Lost Woods as soon as he entered them. Something terrible had recently happened. His mind awhirl with all of the possibilities, Shade spurred Daze quicker over a suspended bridge and through a tunnel to the Kokiri Forest. There, he found a number of Kokiri gathered at the base of a hill, looking up towards the deepest part of the Lost Woods. Shade dismounted and hurried to them. “What’s going on?” he asked.

“We’re not sure,” said one of the Kokiri. “We heard a scream and this terrible laughter. That was an hour ago.”

“Link and Saria were meeting in the woods,” Mido added. “Neither of them has come back out. We’re too afraid to go check…” He trailed off, ashamed.

“It’s okay,” Shade reassured his friends. “I wouldn’t want you all to be in danger. I’ll go investigate.” The Kokiri wished him luck, and Shade climbed the hill to enter the woods. 

Shade soon came upon Link by the edge of a pool. He noted the two fairies circling the Hylian’s bowed head and recognized one of them as Saria’s. But where was the Kokiri girl? “Link,” Shade called. Link didn’t acknowledge the call, so Shade walked up to him. “Where is Saria, Link?” Shade asked his apprentice. 

Link nodded towards the water. “She’s at the bottom of that.” In a small voice, Link explained all that had happened. Shade listened to the story with some pride as Link told of how he had attempted to protect Saria; even managing to draw blood on the enemy. That pride evaporated when Link admitted his reluctance to retrieve the petrified Kokiri.

Shade pointed a trembling finger at the surface of the water. “Get her,” he ordered. When Link simply huddled deeper into himself, the swordsman snatched him up by the upper arm and dragged him out of the woods like a misbehaved child. 

Link allowed himself to be led out of the woods and down the hill. The Kokiri stared at him with puzzled expressions, but he bowed his head to avoid their gazes. He raised it again when he was thrust down a narrow path. He stumbled to a halt and looked over his shoulder to find his furious mentor blocking the way back into the Kokiri Forest. 

“Follow that path,” Shade ordered, and he pointed to the winding path at Link’s back. “You will find the Great Deku Tree. You can explain to him why you won’t retrieve Saria. You can explain your cowardice to him.”

Link made no attempt to argue against Shade. He turned away from the curious eyes of the Kokiri and the hard look of his mentor to begin the lonely walk down the path. He had never visited the Great Deku Tree’s clearing before, so he was apprehensive as he rounded the corners of the path. 

The path’s end opened up onto a gentle, sloped clearing. At its center Link found the Great Deku Tree, towering over the woods. Unlike the other trees in the Lost Woods, this tree’s boughs whispered and creaked, and the ground thrummed along the lines of its buried roots. When Link drew near, the bark on the trunk of the massive tree shifted. Link focused on it and found a wise face peering at him from within the shadows of moss and leaves. 

“Link,” the Great Deku Tree spoke in a voice like wind through branches. “You have grown.”

A feeling of immense power swept over Link. It was much like the heady sensation he had experienced as a child in the Lost Woods, only multiplied. He dropped to his knees under its weight and bowed low, but he didn’t have the heart to raise his head again. He clutched at the grass beneath his hands and pressed his forehead against the ground. He wanted to let this massive, benign power wash over him forever, but he didn’t deserve it kindness. “Great Deku Tree… I--”

“You are troubled,” the Great Deku Tree said before Link could get any farther. “You do not know the path which you must take. You believe one thing while others tell you differently.”

“I’m not the hero they think I can be,” Link confirmed. “I’m no one.” He fought back tears of shame. “I thought… When I was on Death Mountain, I felt like I could do this… But now I’m only making a mess of things. I’m… I’m a coward. I let Saria be turned to stone, and now she sits at the bottom of a pool, and I don’t have the courage to save her.”

“You are courageous, Link,” the Great Deku Tree said with utter certainty. “But that courage is clouded by fear. To be even more courageous, you must be willing to stand up to your fear and surpass it. You can do this.”

“I don’t think I can,” Link said with a small shake of his head. 

“Rise, Link,” the Great Deku Tree ordered gently. Link lifted his head from the ground and rose to his feet. “You are a child of destiny,” the Great Deku Tree continued. “A descendant of the ancient hero and a chosen of the Goddesses.” 

Link frowned at these words, some of which Din had said, but he didn’t have an opportunity to ask for clarification. The Great Deku Tree was continuing, “Within my woods, something has appeared. You must retrieve it. Only those with a sure, courageous heart will be able to bring it back out of the woods and claim it as their own. This is the task I set to you. If you can manage it, you will know you have the courage to conquer your fears. Go, Link, and prove your courage to yourself.”

“Yes, Great Deku Tree,” Link said. He bowed his head in parting and turned to make his way up the slope, along the path, and back to the Kokiri Forest. He found Shade standing in the middle of the village, soaking wet. Saria’s stony body now stood amongst a crying group of Kokiri. Link ducked his eyes from his mentor’s accusing glare. 

“Well?” Shade prompted, and the Kokiri looked to Link as one.

“The Great Deku Tree has given me a task,” Link said. “I’m to go into the woods and retrieve what has appeared there. He said I will know I have the courage to face my fears if I can bring this object out of the woods.”

“And what is the object?” Shade asked. Link shrugged, having no idea. “Best be off then,” Shade snapped. “Go!” he urged when Link continued to hesitate. 

The Hylian opened his mouth as if to speak, but seemed to think better of it and headed off towards the deeper woods in silence.


	13. Unworthy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Link discovers a sacred object deep in the Lost Woods, and begins the next part of his journey towards becoming the hero Hyrule needs. Meanwhile, Vaati makes an offer to Darcel.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're at over fifty hits! Thank you!
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> Please enjoy this chapter.

# In the Shade of a Hero

### Unworthy

In the absence of the menacing Vaati, the Lost Woods had regained their former--and admittedly misleading--beauty. Link stepped into the shade of the towering trees and felt their shadows wrap him in cool calm. Was he in a better mood--a less shamed one--he could have enjoyed the pureness of the woods. Instead, he retraced the short path he had taken with Saria, his head bowed and shoulders hunched. 

Upon reaching the small clearing with its pool of deep water, Link took a fork in the path and continued into a section of the woods he had never before visited. He was remembering some of Saria’s words--her promise that, with the Great Deku Tree’s blessing, Link would never lose his way in the woods. He also remembered her claim that she had found something in the woods she had wanted Link to see. Could this be the same something the Great Deku Tree had tasked Link to collect?

Link groaned and clutched at his hat rim. “How am I supposed to find something when I don’t even know what or where it is?” He dropped his hands and bowed his head forward again. He decided to just amble around until an idea struck him. Unless he focused on returning to the Kokiri Village, he could wander the trees for as long as he liked and still never emerge from the woods. 

It was with this thought that Link got an idea. _Maybe I can try that same concept, but in reverse._ He focused his mind on one thought: _To find what I’m supposed to find._ He set off with all of his concentration fixed on this goal. 

Twenty minutes into his more focused wandering, Link began to notice changes in the environment around him. The trees grew thicker and taller; they were older than the trees now far behind him. At the same time, the undergrowth beneath his boots thinned out as it was replaced by grass, which was all that could survive in the shadows of the trees. Yet while these signs of life receded somewhat, other signs thrived. Link noticed an increase in fauna around him. Deer marked him without fear, and it wasn’t strange to see a rabbit or fox dart boldly across his path mere feet from him. 

“This is a little weird, Navi,” Link remarked to his silent companion, who darted out of his collar to observe the wildlife. “Something must be attracting th--Whoa.” 

Link stopped dead in his tracks, and his limbs froze. A wolf, of all creatures, had stepped into his path. It didn’t dart into the shadows like so many of the other animals. Instead, it stopped and sat down in front of Link as if intending to block his way forward. The wolf was old. Its muzzle was gray, and a wound had taken the wolf’s right eye, leaving behind only a scar.

Link’s body wanted to tremble, but he remembered the Great Deku Tree’s words about courage and needing to face fears. He straightened his back and--against his better judgment--bowed low to the creature, knowing at the back of his mind that he was exposing his neck. “I mean no harm,” Link said. He had a feeling the wolf could understand him. “I’m only passing through on my way to collect something. I will then leave in peace.”

_What do you offer in payment?_

Link straightened up to look upon the wolf properly. It didn’t strike him as odd that he could hear the creature speak in his head. He felt this wolf was in some way connected to the deep magic of the woods around him. But what was this talk of a payment? The Great Deku Tree had mentioned nothing like that. “I have little to give,” Link was forced to admit.

_None may enter the Sacred Grove without offering payment,_ the wolf explained. Its tongue lolled out and licked the full length of its muzzle from left to right. _I will take your right eye,_ the wolf said next. _As you can see, I am lacking that half of my set._

“I could use my eye for a little longer,” Link countered. “I have a great task ahead of me to save Hyrule--or so I’m told--and any handicap would only benefit my enemies.”

_Then I will defer payment for a time,_ the wolf relented. _But before your task is done you will lose your eye to me. That is your sacrifice for entering the Sacred Grove and making use of the Master Sword before you’ve truly earned the right to wield it._

“The Master Sword?” Link repeated in a murmur. Was that the object he had to find? “I wasn’t told of any payment being necessary,” Link said next with a distrustful look. 

The wolf snarled, and its teeth flashed. _Do you think you are an adequate hero for the task ahead of you?_

“No, but I--”

_Precisely. You are not a hero. Not yet. Only heroes may wield the blade of evil’s bane._

“I was told to collect it by the Great Deku Tree himself!” Link snapped before the wolf could go further. He didn’t want to hear his doubts tossed back into his face like this. “Now will you let me by?”

_Will you pay the price?_

Link sighed and dropped his eyes. Perhaps if he was stronger, this wouldn’t be happening. But what could he do? He wasn’t eager to turn around and face Shade empty-handed. He nodded his acquiesce.

_Kneel down and close your eyes, descendant of the ancient hero._

Link did as he was instructed. With Navi trembling against his neck, he fell to his knees and closed his eyes. He expected a bite or scratch--some physical mark of the payment he would eventually have to make. Instead, he felt a warm, wet tongue trail over his closed right eye. When the tongue fell away, Link opened his eyes to find himself alone on the path. He raised his palm to his right eye; his gauntlet came away smeared in spit. 

Link clenched his fingers closed into a fist and stood up to continue walking. He decided he wasn’t going to dwell under further unease by thinking on what had just happened. He had a task to complete, and he had to finish it before he could continue his job of finding a way to save Hyrule and Zelda. 

The path ended in a clearing marked on both sides by crumbling stone walls--clear relics of an ancient era. Link walked up to one such wall and ran his fingertips along the stone molding of what was once a window. The glass was long gone, and the detail of the molding was weathered down to bland stone. All the same, Link could feel a sense of what was once a great structure. He turned his head to study the rest of the clearing as a whole. He could imagine a wide room with a mirror-like floor, stained glass, and a high ceiling. Now there was only grass and piles of rock. 

Navi shot towards the back of the clearing, and Link followed her, trusting her instincts. He had overlooked something during his initial inspection of the clearing: a grouping of thick vines that was congregated in a strange way. Navi flew up and down in sweeping V’s above the vines, and under her silent insistence Link ripped and pulled the vines away. 

Beneath them was a sword speared into the ground at a slight angle. It looked stunningly perfect despite the rough environment that surrounded it. The hilt was a deep purple-blue, and emblazoned with a small jewel. The crest of the Triforce was marked into the blade’s base. Link ran his fingers over this latter detail, and thoughts of Zelda filled his head--as well as the words of the strange wolf.

_That is your sacrifice for entering the Sacred Grove and making use of the Master Sword before you’ve truly earned the right to wield it._

“I’m not worthy,” Link murmured. “Not yet, anyway.” Navi floated down and settled upon the Master Sword’s hilt. “But I have to do this. I have to take this sword. I have to use it. I’ll earn the right to wield it properly in time.” 

Navi flew up and perched upon Link’s shoulder when he reached out and gripped the Master Sword’s hilt in his left hand. With a grunt of effort, he freed the blade with a strong pull. A strange power ran through his arm, and he shuddered. It passed quickly, leaving him with a touch more confidence than he had felt when he faced the wolf.

Link lifted the Master Sword up towards the sky and watched the sunlight reflect off of its sharp edges. A glint of light from the blade caught his right eye, and a sharp pain hit it. Link lowered the sword with a gasp, and his right hand flew up to his eye. It was tearing up; the world doubled behind the veil of water. 

The pain left Link as soon as it had struck him, and he wiped tears from his cheek. It was a reminder--a warning. “I can’t allow myself to be distracted by that,” Link said to Navi, and she bobbed in support. “I have to stay focused and save Hyrule before it’s too late.”

#

“He’s back, Master Shade.”

Shade lifted his head and crushed out his barely-started cigarette on the heel of a boot. He had finally managed to light the damned thing in the village despite the Great Deku Tree’s influence, and now here the kid was, arriving at the most inopportune moment. With a glower on his face, Shade stood up from the low fence he was seated upon and started towards his apprentice, who was looking a little bedraggled from his hour-long walk in the woods. _Sometimes I think the Goddesses are laughing at me,_ Shade thought. 

After stopping in front of Link, the swordsman pressed, “Well? Did you find whatever you had to find?”

Link gave no verbal reply, but he lifted the sword in his hand to chest height, presenting it at a horizontal angle so that the emblem at the base of the blade was thrown into the sun. 

Shade’s reaction was startling. His face slackened in shock, and he took a step back. The Kokiri looked on silently in the wake of this sudden shift in mood. Their eyes darted between Link, the blade in his hand, and Shade. After his initial shock, Shade shook his body free of its surprise and snapped at Link, “Where did you get that sword, boy?”

“I found it,” Link said, and he lowered the sword to his side. “That was the task set to me. Though… I was told that I’m not yet worthy to wield it at its full strength.”

“Damn straight you’re not worthy,” Shade spat.

“But I _am_ able to use it,” Link countered hotly, and he fixed a determined look onto his mentor. “And I will learn to wield it effectively. I will face my fears and weaknesses with courage, and come out stronger because of it. I’ve agreed to pay the price for taking this blade up before I’m ready, and I’m going to use it to save Hyrule and Zelda!” Link punctuated this vow with a swift swipe of the Master Sword through the air. The Kokiri gasped in admiration. 

Shade arched an eyebrow and stepped to the side to reveal Saria. The petrified Kokiri girl was still standing in the middle of the village. “Prove your intent,” Shade ordered his apprentice. “Free Saria from her stone prison with the power of the Master Sword.”

Link’s audacity slipped away, and he was forced to admit in a sullen tone, “I don’t know how.”

“It’s not hard,” Shade said. “Every Hylian has magic running through his or her blood. Concentrate that power on the Master Sword. If you’re meant to use that sword, you will be able to charge up the blade with magic and consequently release that power. Aim for her.” Shade pointed at Saria, dropped his hand, and waited for Link to act. 

Link still had no idea what Shade was talking about, but it would do him no good to stand around and wait for some sudden insight to come to his head. The Kokiri were looking on at him with hopeful expressions. Link could only try to undo Saria’s curse. He closed his eyes and sucked in a deep breath that he released slowly to relax his body. With this done, he tried to collect the magic Shade claimed ran through his veins. Link imagined invisible streams of power sweeping down his left arm and over the fingers he had clenched around the Master Sword’s hilt. 

At once, it was as if Link was in another body--a body that knew what it was doing. This was the same feeling that had come over him in Volvagia’s nest when he was out of options for shelter. At that time, a deep voice--calm, familiar, and powerful--had focused his thoughts. The voice didn’t speak this time, but that same calm power directed Link’s arm to swing his sword out. 

Link opened his eyes as if waking from a deep sleep, and he was surprised to find the Master Sword’s blade was starting to glow. Now that he was witnessing the gathering power, it felt as natural as twitching a muscle. The powerful presence receded to be replaced by Link’s own confidence, and he swung his sword out in a wide half-circle. An arc of magic swept low over the ground, leaving a trail of flattened grass in its wake on the way towards Saria. The magic hit the petrified Kokiri girl, and she began to glow with a bright light. When the light became too bright to look upon, the stone burst apart in a rain of glowing shards that dissipated into thin air. Saria fell forward onto her hands and knees with a coughing gasp. 

Shade broke out into a genuine smile as the Kokiri rushed forward to greet their revived friend. “Well done, Link,” he praised with a clap of his hand on the young Hylian’s shoulder. 

Link smiled up at him, but the expression was shaky. He was unused to magic, and he felt weak in the wake of performing it for the first time. His left arm trembled, and it was all he could do to hold the Master Sword. But the look of happiness Saria turned onto Link was worth the effort he had put out. Link dropped to one knee to embrace Saria when she ran to him. After pulling away he started to apologize for not protecting her better.

Saria silenced Link’s words with a small finger to his lips. “Enough,” she said. “It was my decision to push you out of the way. And I don’t blame you for your reluctance to pull me out of the water.”

“You were aware?” Shade guessed. 

Saria nodded once, solemnly. “It was a torturous kind of magic. I could see and hear everything, but I couldn’t move or speak. I knew I was stone, but I was also as aware as any of you are now. But you saved me, Link,” Saria smiled at the young Hylian. “I believe in your courage. I believe you have what it takes to save Hyrule. You just need to get over this fear of water.” She ruffled Link’s hat and hair vigorously, and Link uttered a shaky laugh. “Is Shade still mad at you?” Saria asked in a stage whisper. She sent a swift wink towards the swordsman when Link bowed his head with a groan. 

“I’m in a bit of a better mood,” Shade admitted. “So much better, in fact, that I think I’ll grant Link the gift I was going to give him before I found out he’d gone yellow in the face of fear.” 

A shamed blush lit up Link’s cheeks, and he glared at empty air at this reminder of his earlier cowardice. He relaxed when Shade offered him a large, flat object covered in a cloth. “What’s this?” Link asked. He buried the Master Sword in the ground so as to have both hands free to undo the cloth. When it had fallen away, the object was revealed to be a fine steel shield emblazoned with the royal crest in blue, red, and yellow. 

“A standard for every knight of Hyrule,” Shade explained while Link admired the Hylian shield with wide eyes. “Since you ruined my shield, I thought it was only fitting to replace it with one that will take a heavier beating. Just keep out of close range of fire-breathing dragons.”

Link traced a wing of the red bird on the crest, fitted the shield onto his right arm, and picked up the Master Sword with his left hand. He struck a pose, shield out and sword to the side, for the admiration and amusement of the Kokiri. “How do I look?” Link asked them.

“More aggression!” Mido suggested, and Link furrowed his brow in a look of fierce determination. The Kokiri laughed and clapped their hands in approval. Link fell back into a relaxed posture to laugh with them. The next moment, he was almost bowed over when Shade leaned a heavy arm on his shoulders. 

“Don’t be filling his head with delusions of grandeur,” Shade said to the Kokiri in a tone of mock warning. “Link’s still got a way to go before I’m willing to call him even a half-hero.” To Link directly he said, “Rest up today. Tomorrow morning we set off first thing for the Zora kingdom. You want to wield that sword? You need to learn elegance and poise. You need to learn to be swift and to adapt quickly--just as a Zora adapts to life both on land… and in the water.” 

Link swallowed hard. 

“We set out at dawn,” Shade finished, and Link nodded once. He was no longer smiling easily. Shade marked his apprentice’s expression with a sharp eye and walked away to make another attempt at getting through a cigarette. 

#

Darcel winced with each crash of pottery or glass that echoed down the hall. He knew he shouldn’t be poking his nose into what was obviously none of his business, but curiosity was always Darcel’s weak point. It got him into a lot of trouble as a kid; the Lost Woods incident being only one example. Now it inched him down the hall. He stopped every few steps when a crash or boom startled him. Each smash was accompanied by a sound of rage--a snarl, a scream, a shout, sometimes a mixture of all--and Darcel had no problem identifying the voice. 

“It’s all your fault! You couldn’t keep your thoughts about your precious _hero_ to yourself, and I--”

“Vaati?” Darcel called as he poked his head around a partially-open door. A vase flew towards him, and he drew his head back behind the door with a gasp. The vase shattered against the doorframe in a burst of water and porcelain. 

Darcel braved a second look and found Vaati staring at him with a startlingly fearful expression. For one brief moment it was like looking into the face of the young teenager whom Vaati resembled. The look lasted a bare second before it was replaced with that of a hungry snake that had just spied a tasty mouse. 

That terrifying expression was next pushed away, and Vaati brushed aside his flyaway bangs to force an easy smile to his face. He straightened his back and shoulders, and shook a stray lock out of his eyes. Darcel marked a bleeding cut on the Wind Mage’s cheek. 

“Come here, Darcel,” Vaati invited with a beckon of a sharp-nailed finger. 

When Vaati gave an order--even one as kindly veiled as this--Darcel knew it was unwise to refuse. He stepped into the sitting room properly and walked forward to stand within Vaati’s reach. 

Vaati’s fingers hooked around Darcel’s face, and they pinched as if the Wind Mage was an over-eager grandparent. “You look concerned,” Vaati noted.

“I was just wondering if you were all right,” Darcel said, which was a half-truth. “I heard shouts and crashes--”

“I’m just destroying property that isn’t mine to channel my rage. It’s a hobby. Unless you prefer I save the nice things of this castle and use you instead?” 

Darcel shook his imprisoned head vigorously. 

“Wise choice, Darcel. Ganondorf doesn’t give you half the credit you deserve--you’re clearly a smarter child than he realizes.” Vaati released Darcel and sat down in a chair. Stuffing burst out of claw marks in the upholstery. With sweeps of his fingers, the Wind Mage began to comb out the worst of the tangles in his matted hair.

“You have a cut on your cheek,” Darcel pointed out. He imagined Vaati had gained the wound sometime during his fits of rage. 

Vaati’s combing fingers stuttered to a halt, and he reached up to trace the mar under his eye. His hands dropped to his lap. “Our Hylian hero can be thanked for that.” Vaati licked the pad of a finger and trailed it over the bleeding cut. The wound sealed up, leaving behind a line of scar tissue. 

“You mean Link?” Darcel said as Vaati sucked blood off of his finger. 

The Wind Mage’s lips curled, and his teeth were bared around his finger. _“Yes.”_

“I didn’t even know he could use a sword.”

“He can’t. It was a lucky hit.” This, more than anything, seemed to be making Vaati angry. “He will not get the chance to try again.”

“You heard Ganondorf’s orders,” Darcel reminded Vaati. “Link is not to be harmed until the go-ahead is given.”

“I don’t give a _damn_ about Ganondorf’s orders!” Vaati shouted. He gained his feet, closed the distance to Darcel, and leaned in. His ruby eyes were livid with anger. He clenched his teeth together and hissed through them, “The Hylian child _will_ die. I won’t let him run around and ruin all of my fun!” Vaati growled low and swept away to pace a short distance back and forth across the floor. “And what about you?” he next snapped at Darcel. “I thought you wanted Link dead as well.”

“I do,” Darcel said with a nod. “And I’d like to be the one to kill him.”

_“I’d like to be the one to kill him,”_ Vaati repeated, mockingly. He smiled without humor. “Such a dark heart you have, child. I knew there was a reason why you were growing on me.” Vaati returned to Darcel and threw a companionable arm over the Hylian’s shoulders. “Tell me, has Ganondorf granted you a role to play in all of this yet?”

Darcel was forced to shake his head in denial. “He told me he would have an answer for me by tomorrow.”

“And what do you think that answer will be?” Vaati asked. Darcel offered no reply. “Well, let’s say he refuses to allow you to play in his game,” Vaati continued. “If that becomes the case--and face it, child, Ganondorf won’t let you play your part. Just as he wants to protect Link, he wants to protect you. He is too soft for a king. Where was I? Ah yes… Should Ganondorf deny you your role, this is what _I_ offer to you.”

Vaati waved a hand in the air before Darcel, and a smoky image of Lake Hylia appeared to float in front of him. “Your own game board,” the Wind Mage whispered into Darcel’s ear. “Where you are the king, and your brother a lowly pawn just waiting to be struck off. I will grant you this land. I will protect its borders for you from prying Zoras, Hylians, or anyone else who might think they still own it. In exchange, all I ask is that you beat your brother to a bloody stain on the ground.”

“Link is afraid of deep water,” Darcel murmured, and Vaati nodded at his shoulder. “I’ll be at an advantage from the start. I’m stronger than him _and_ more skilled. Plus, I know sorcery--”

“Which is why I don’t understand why Ganondorf continues to shield you from him,” Vaati cut in with a sad shake of his head. 

“Maybe it’s the other way around,” Darcel said in a furious tone. “He’s protecting Link from me.” Darcel’s own ruby eyes glinted with a hard light. “I won’t let it continue. Link is the enemy.”

“And you know what else?” Vaati spoke up. Darcel turned his head with an arched eyebrow. “If Link is eliminated there will be no more _Link and Darcel._ No more twins. No more two sides to a coin. You will be your own entity. The black shadow that swallows its caster--a darker Link.”

“A darker Link… _Dark Link,”_ Darcel murmured. His eyes dropped back to the smoky image of Lake Hylia. “I like the sound of that.” 

Behind Darcel’s shoulder, Vaati’s lips parted in a hungry, sharp-toothed grin.

#

Shade, riding atop Daze, led the way across Hyrule field with Link in tow on Epona. The two riders had struck out at dawn that morning, just as Shade had promised. There was little opportunity for goodbyes. Nearly all of the Kokiri were still asleep when Link and Shade guided their horses out of the village. Only Saria was awake to wish Link luck on this newest leg of his journey. As she passed a filled canteen to Link, the Hylian noted the way her green eyes marked Shade off and on. Saria was unsettled by something about the swordsman, and Link guessed Shade had some plan up his sleeve that he hadn’t yet divulged to his apprentice. 

Now Link and Shade were stopped on the edge of the Zora River; close by Death Mountain where the body of water was narrowest. There was a tunnel on the opposite side of the river. It was the only way into the Zora kingdom. 

“The horses will keep,” Shade said, and he dismounted. Link followed his example. “I’m only going to dump your sorry butt off with Ruto anyway, and then I’ll return for them.” He smiled to show Link he meant the words as kindly as possible. Link’s closed expression didn’t change. 

“What’s wrong with you, boy?” Shade pressed. Link only shook his head. “Well let’s go. We have to cross here.” The swordsman walked up to the river’s bank, but turned back when he sensed Link had not yet moved from beside Epona. “What’s keeping you, Link?” Shade asked. 

Link’s hand was stroking Epona’s smooth neck, but the hand froze at Shade’s question. He didn’t look at Shade, and he still didn’t turn his head when the swordsman stepped up to his side. 

“Move, boy--across the river.”

Link’s eyebrows knitted together in a faint glare. “No.”

“Are you refusing my orders?”

“Yes.” Link’s reply was curt with defiance. The next moment he was splayed on the ground with his cheek ringing in pain. Navi flew out of his collar in alarm and flitted over to perch atop Epona’s head.

“You shame that shield on your back,” Shade snapped down at Link. “All of the men who died to protect this kingdom during the coup? Their blood stains numerous shields just like your own, and they were a lot braver and more skilled than you.”

“Good for them,” Link snapped bitterly. “All they got for their efforts was an early grave.” The hard toe of a boot met the underside of Link’s jaw next, and he rolled over against the ground with a muffled cry of pain. A heel hit him in the middle of his bowed back, forcing him down into the dirt, and he released a sharper cry.

“You need to learn respect,” Shade hissed while he held Link down with a heavy foot. “You need to get over this weakness of yours as well. Stand up, boy!” Shade pulled his foot back, and Link slowly gained his feet. Blood coursed out of a corner of his mouth; he wiped it away, spat out a mouthful more, and glared at Shade. 

“March,” Shade ordered, and he pointed to the distant bridge further downriver. “You’re going to Kakariko Village.”

“That was your plan from the start,” Link accused.

“Oh _good!_ That hit didn’t rattle your brain too badly. Yes, that was my plan. The arrangements have already been made, and Impa is waiting for you. Now _march!”_

Link started to walk, limping slightly since each step sparked pain in his back. He didn’t attempt to mount Epona. The horse instead followed him faithfully while Shade swung up onto Daze and guided her along behind Link. The Hylian recognized this as what it was: a walk of shame. He tried not to think on it when he entered Kakariko Village under the stares of numerous villagers. Still, these people knew Link, and to see them looking at him in pity--or worse, amusement when they remembered he was once a favorite of the Royal Family--was enough to make Link bow his head. 

Thus he didn’t see Impa standing by the village well, and he would have run into her if Shade didn’t dismount his horse and stop the Hylian with a hand on his right shoulder. It was not a friendly gesture; simply a means of pushing Link towards Impa, showcasing his sorry state. 

“Take this child.” Shade said to Impa, and his hand tightened around Link’s near-dead shoulder; a sharp pain sparked down one of the few live nerves remaining, and Link grimaced. “Take him and teach him respect. Teach him what it means to carry the shield and sword he bears.”

Impa nodded once and marked Link with her steely gaze. “I’ll show him a thing or two,” she promised Shade.

“And do something about this ridiculous fear of water,” Shade added in a hard tone. “Throw him in the well if that’s what it will take.”

Impa looked troubled by this second task. “This is not a village where facing fears will be easy,” she said. “It is founded on a land soaked in bloody history.”

“Then at the very least bring it to a manageable level,” Shade said. 

Impa nodded again. “I’ll do my best.”

“Then I leave him in your more-than-capable hands, Impa,” Shade said with a brief bow of his head. “He has two weeks to improve.” After a final glare at Link, Shade turned around, freed Link’s traveling bags from Epona’s saddle, and took hold of both horses’ reins. Navi stayed behind as Epona was led away. She sunk onto Link’s hat as if it was a soft bed. 

Impa reached out and pulled Link’s chin up with a touch of her fingers. When he fixed his glum, blue-eyed gaze on her, she smiled gently. “Come on, lad. I haven’t seen you since the night you left to breach the castle. Let’s catch up over breakfast. You can tell me how you managed to get your hands on the Master Sword.”

Link cast an eye down at his bags, from which one of them the Master Sword protruded. “How do you know what this sword is?” Link asked Impa.

“I know because I’m the one who took over the late queen’s job of telling Zelda her bedtime stories as a child,” Impa replied with a smile. 

Link didn’t think this was the entire truth, but he didn’t question Impa any further. In silence he followed her to her house where the smell of breakfast hinted at a better start to the morning.


	14. Reflections

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Link begins his training under Impa, and Zelda makes her escape from the castle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for your support!
> 
> I took some inspiration from the _Ocarina of Time_ manga for a scene in this chapter.
> 
> Please enjoy, thank you!

# In the Shade of a Hero

### Reflections

Link wasn’t sure what Impa had set in front of him. He only knew that the steam rising off of it was undeniably alluring. Although he wasn’t particularly starving, his stomach growled in the wake of the smell of the dish. Impa heard the sound, and she laughed as she sat down across from him with her own plate. The food was a strange brownish color; Link suspected some sort of grain. It was formed into a cake-like mass. 

“It’s an old recipe passed along the Sheikah line,” Impa explained while Link prodded the mass with a fork. “It’s good. You’ll like it. It will feed even your Goron-sized appetite.”

Link forked up a bite and stuck it into his mouth. It was coarse, sweet, and absolutely delicious. And it filled him up fast. The small amount Impa gave him was more than enough to satisfy. Link felt energized soon after emptying his plate. Even his aches were gone. He wanted to get up right away and do something--anything. He made to stand when Impa collected his plate. 

Impa put a firm hand on Link’s shoulder and pushed him back into his seat. “You’re not going anywhere yet,” she said. “I want to hear everything, so start talking.”

Link talked at great length for much of the morning. Impa often interjected. She questioned him on nearly everything, and not just to clarify details. Mostly, she asked Link about his feelings during certain points of his story. They were strange questions, and they left him feeling oddly cored; as if Impa was reaching straight into him and pulling out something he usually kept hidden. 

“You’ve been through a lot already,” Impa remarked when Link finally finished describing his fight with Shade on the bank of the Zora River. “I must say,” the Sheikah added with shake of her head. “You were stupid to disrespect the dead.”

“It was a slip of the tongue,” Link said. He bowed his head to hide the shamed blush on his cheeks. “I was angry at Shade--”

“No, you were angry at _yourself,”_ Impa corrected. “And you’re still angry because you showed fear--a fear you can’t seem to get over.” 

Link frowned at his lap while his fingers worked together. Impa had spoken so casually, but she wasn’t the one who had seen those shapes in the water while her life’s blood left her. 

“Link,” Impa called softly. Link lifted his head and found her looking warmly upon him. “The Master Sword would not have allowed you to take it out of the Lost Woods if you were not worthy to wield it. There _is_ courage in you.”

“About that.” Link had left a small detail out of his story, but at Impa’s words he decided to reveal it. “I had to pay a price to enter the Sacred Grove and take the Master Sword--a sacrifice.” And he told Impa about the strange wolf, and the agreement the creature had required Link to accept. 

“So I don’t deserve it,” Link concluded. “But I paid the price, so I’m allowed to use it.”

Impa looked troubled by the story. Her brow furrowed as she thought on some hidden thought. Her face relaxed when she shook her head to reassure Link. “No, Link. Even if you had paid your price right then and there, you would still not have been able to enter that grove and take the Master Sword unless it recognized you as its master. Take it from someone who knows the Hyrulean legends and myths back to front: you are meant to carry that blade.”

“But why _me?”_

“Link, if simply _knowing_ made all the difference in the world, we wouldn’t have half the problems we have now. Sometimes things must be discovered through hard work, determination, and a bit of luck. Now get up. We’ve been sitting for hours--time to stretch our muscles. We’re going for a walk.”

Outside, the village was active; as if there was no dark threat sitting in the remains of Hyrule Castle. Link followed Impa out of her house and through the busy village. They struck a path between the houses and shops, heading towards the village’s back. Not far into the start of their walk, Link asked Impa, “Can you still sense Zelda?”

“You’re worried for her,” Impa guessed. Link nodded behind her back. “I understand your concern, Link. Unfortunately, as you are now you cannot hope to help her. But rest assured she is fine. In fact, I think she’s planning something.” Impa’s brow wrinkled with thought. “I sense urgency when I think on her. It’s not fear that’s sparking this urgency, though.”

“What is it then?” Link asked in a voice tight with concern. Zelda was trying something? Link didn’t want her to get hurt in an act as foolish as an escape attempt. He knew how badly things could go when the odds were stacked against someone.

Impa looked back over her shoulder and caught Link’s worried gaze. “She has a great love for her people and kingdom, and that is a powerful driving force. Zelda has never been one to sit still. She also wants to see you again. She knows you’re alive.” 

Link’s unease faded, and he managed a smile. “I want to see her again, too.”

Impa slung an arm over Link’s shoulders and dragged him up to walk beside her. “Come along, my smitten little hero. I have something to show you.”

The good humor in Impa gradually faded the longer she and Link walked through the village. Link didn’t have to guess at the reason. He could see what they were approaching: the village graveyard. Link knew that, along with the villagers, members of the Royal Family were buried in a crypt at the back of the graveyard. No doubt Impa had some lesson planned around this fact. 

Upon coming to the graveyard, the first thing Impa and Link met was a large headstone. Although it marked no actual grave, there was an inscription dedicated to the fallen of Hyrule’s past, as well as the land and Royal Family as a whole. It was a subtle reminder of just how much crimson blood had stained Hyrule’s green fields in the name of peace. At Impa’s indication, Link knelt down beside her on one knee and paid silent respects to the marker. When Impa rose to her feet, Link followed her, and they continued towards the back of graveyard.

“We must always remember where we come from,” Impa said to Link as they walked. “Our past helps to define us, but we must also mold ourselves into an image we want to become--an image that does not dishonor all of the sacrifices of those who came before us. Everyone talks about power, wisdom, or courage when we seek to describe ourselves. It’s only natural, given each of our Goddesses defines one of those aspects. But there are other values we must uphold. Respect, integrity, humility, patience… These and many more.” 

Impa stopped and turned around to place her hands on Link’s shoulders. Her eyes studied him with intensity. “I see all of that in you, Link. I know you did not mean what you said about our fallen in the castle. I watched you grow up. I know you’re a kind young man. But if you let fear catch you in its grip, it will turn your thoughts, your actions--your very _words_ \--into tools of darkness. That is how people like Ganondorf are able to gain so much power so quickly. They play on a person’s fear, and the victims corrupt themselves far faster than any magic could. The darkness spreads like a plague in the form of panic, anger, sadness… Whatever outlet it can find.”

Impa’s words were worrying, and with a troubled expression on his face, Link remarked, “You make it all sound so hopeless.”

Impa shook her head. There was a smile on her lips. “It’s not,” she assured Link. “There are always those who are immune to the plagues of darkness. They’ve stood up against it, have beaten it back, and the world has been saved time and time again. Here, I’ll show you.”

Impa led Link to the Royal Family crypt, just as he had suspected she would. Yet they did not enter the underground vault where the late rulers were laid to rest for generations. Instead, Impa led Link around the vault’s entrance to a span of stone wall at the back of the graveyard. Link stood back while the Sheikah ran her hands along the stone in search of something. Soon she found a groove and, with a whispered word, a light sprung out of it. It faded quickly, and the sound of shifting, grinding stone rent the quiet air. A small door was revealed when a portion of rock slid behind the rest of the wall. Impa slipped through the door, beckoning Link to follow her. He did so in a cloud of unease. A secret door in a graveyard? What could be hidden behind it?

The tunnel beyond the door was dark, but easy to navigate. Link only had to keep a hand on a wall and place one foot in front of the other. Ahead, he could hear Impa, but just barely, and only because she wasn’t trying to lose him. The Sheikah was nearly as silent as a shadow. After a minute’s walk, Link began to see the outline of her silhouette. They were approaching the other end of the tunnel.

Link and Impa came out into an open outdoor space roofed by the joint canopy of many trees. Sunlight filtered as a soft yellow light through the leaves, giving the area a strange, peaceful glow. In the middle of the grass was a small, man-made pond. A statue was erected in the center of it. It was made of copper, and the elements had turned most of the brown metal to a light green. The statue was of a woman bent on her knees with her hands held up before her closed eyes and gently smiling lips; the palms were turned up together to form a cup in which a flower blossom sat in full bloom. Navi flew out of Link’s collar and flitted over to the statue, and Link followed her for a closer look himself. He felt he had seen this woman before. Perhaps in a dream…

Impa was walking along the edge of the area, and for the first time Link noticed there were graves marking the borders of the space. He left the pond and walked to the nearest one. The inscription on the stone was in a strange form of Hylian. Link shook his head at the odd symbols and studied the marker itself. Atop the block in which the inscription was whittled was a replica of a shield carved out of marble. Link looked along the line of graves and saw each one was adorned with a shield, although the styles often varied. “Why shields?” he asked Impa.

The Sheikah paused and turned to look at Link from across the space. “Shields guard the fragile. They protect the otherwise weak. More than any sword, a shield is often the difference between life and death in war. The men, women, and occasional child buried here were shields for their times. They guarded the fragile and protected the weak. Some fought so hard to triumph they ended up paying the ultimate sacrifice. For their courage, they were laid to rest here in this hall of heroes.”

Link’s fingers stuttered to a halt. He was tracing the cross that marked the shield in front of him, but now he dropped his hand. 

_Descendant of the ancient hero…_

“These are my ancestors, aren’t they?” Link asked in a quiet voice.

“Yes,” Impa replied. 

Link swept his gaze up and down the graves again. “You said some of them were children.”

“Yes,” Impa repeated. “Years younger than you. This one…” Impa walked to a grave and pointed out its marker, which was carved into a slight variation of Link’s Hylian shield. “No older than ten. He won his battle, but succumbed to his wounds. On the other hand…” Impa moved two spaces down the line. “This hero won against the forces of darkness and grew to a ripe old age--plowing the way for lots of little descendants during that time.” She cast Link a crafty smile. 

Link laughed; it felt good to do so. It gave this somber place of death some brighter light than the sun overhead. Once his mirth died away, Link walked along the graves. He soon came across something familiar. “Hey, Impa! I know this shield.” 

Impa walked up to Link’s side, and he pointed at the round shield marking one of the graves. “Shade’s shield--the one I used against Volvagia--was just like this one.”

“Indeed?” Impa said with an arched eyebrow. “Well, this is the newest grave in this hall, and this hero’s legend is still fresh in many parts of Hyrule. Perhaps Shade admired him and took it upon himself to fashion a similar shield.”

“Yeah,” Link murmured. He spun around for another look at the area. Seeing Navi still hovering by the statue, he asked, “Impa, who is that woman?” and he nodded at the statue in the middle of the pond.

Impa sighed. “Link, have you forgotten your schooling already? That’s the Goddess of Courage, Farore.”

“I think I’ve seen her before,” Link said.

“No doubt, Link. She and her sisters are in all the history books. Their effigies are everywhere across the land.”

“No, I mean… I think I _saw_ her before,” Link insisted. “Like I saw Din in the Fire Temple. But I think it was just a dream. It’s really hazy.” He bowed his head, closed his eyes, and thought for a moment while Impa looked silently on. “I swear I have. I can almost see her leaning over me…”

“Link,” Impa called, and she placed a light hand on Link’s shoulder. He lifted his head and opened his eyes to look at her. “Put your dreams out of your head,” Impa said with an unusually troubled expression in her eyes. “You must focus on reality--on the present. You have a lot to accomplish before you can be counted amongst the ranks surrounding us. But don’t worry!” she added when Link froze in fear. “I don’t think you’ll be joining these graves anytime soon! You have help, Link. You’re not alone. 

“Now come along. We have work to do. I have a lot to teach you this week, so you must stay focused. You’ll be learning skills in stealth and agility, as well as some magic. It’s going to be hard.” Impa stressed this last with a raise of her eyebrows. “You won’t have much time for sleeping or eating. You must have the patience to endure a lot of trial and error as well.”

Link took one last look around the graves and gave Impa a firm nod. “I can handle anything you throw at me,” he promised. 

Impa released a confident laugh. “Lad, I’m going to make you eat those words.” She led Link out of the clearing, never noticing the man who stood in the shadows.

Ganondorf relaxed once Impa and Link were out sight. He wasn’t sure if his concealment sorcery would be enough to fool the Sheikah, but apparently it had worked. Now alone, he thought on all he had witnessed, from the fight between Link and his master on the shore of the Zora River, to this spiritual reflection in the hall of heroes. There were a lot more worries on Ganondorf’s mind now, and they were similar to Link’s own. Where had the boy gotten the sword that disappeared from the Temple of Time only days ago? Why was the young Hylian--and only him--being trained to be a hero? It couldn’t simply be because of his romantic ties to the princess. There had to be something more.

Ganondorf pushed away from the wall and walked up to the pond. He marked his reflection in the water. It looked haggard. He was relying too much on sorcery as of late, and it was taking its toll not only on him, but on the land he had once coveted so much. How was taking over this kingdom going to help his own people if there was nothing left of it by the end?

Ganondorf looked up into the smiling face of Farore. “What do you see in him?” he asked the statue. “And what do you plan to do with him? You must know he’ll challenge me if he continues along this path. Are you so sure I won’t rip him apart?”

That was a question Ganondorf had to ask himself, and he paused to consider it. He had promised Link he would protect Darcel, and at the same time he made a promise to himself to protect Link as well. But now Link was actively going against Ganondorf. Promises held little substance in the face of that fact.

“This is all my mothers’ fault,” Ganondorf growled, and he opened a swirling portal to the desert. He knew his mothers would find him at once. The portal was no sooner wisps of sorcery in the dry air when the witches appeared in front of Ganondorf. He met their eager faces with a scowl.

“Hyrule rots,” Ganondorf began, “and it’s all because of this sorcery you taught to me. What good is a dead kingdom to my people? And this Triforce…” He held out his hand, and the back of it glowed with golden power. “You didn’t tell me it might split. You didn’t tell me I wouldn’t be worthy of it.”

“We had hoped you would be,” Koume spoke up. She and her sister were unmoved by Ganondorf’s anger. They stood side-by-side atop the sand and regarded him with cool expressions. 

Kotake shook her head. “Yet it seems our hopes were once again dashed by your incompetence.”

 _“My_ incompetence?” Ganondorf roared, and he gestured to his mothers. “Everything I know, I learned from you!”

“You’re so quick to put blame on others, Ganondorf, except yourself,” Koume said with a flippant wave of her hand.

“Believe me,” Ganondorf growled, “I blame myself plenty.”

“Well, you obviously haven’t learned from your mistakes,” Kotake picked up, and she shared a sneer with her sister. “The boy still lives, doesn’t he? And you refuse to utilize the other one to his full potential. And it’s all out of some misplaced paternal love.”

“Perhaps we should have let the Wind Mage handle things alone.”

“Yes. He’s far more efficient.”

Ganondorf’s shoulders tensed, and he snapped at his mothers, “Hyrule is _mine!”_ It came out louder than he expected, and his right hand crackled with golden arcs of lightning. It sent a tingle up his arm that he shook out with a grimace.

Koume sighed. “You really should let out your power more often, Ganondorf.”

“Keep it bottled up, and it will only get worse,” Kotake added with a wise nod.

Ganondorf flexed his fingers. The emblem was gone. “It’s already worse,” he murmured. “I feel its voice in my head. It’s unbearable sometimes. I lie awake for hours, unable to sleep, and feel my muscles twitching with its power.”

“It will get better once you regain the whole Triforce,” Koume promised him.

“Keep your focus on maintaining your hold on Hyrule,” Kotake advised. “Trust fate to bring the Triforce pieces to you. It has happened before, and it can happen again.”

“And for all our sakes stop holding back,” Koume snapped in exasperation. “Use _all_ of your resources.”

“The boy included,” Kotake tacked on, and she vanished with her sister.

Ganondorf dropped to his knees once he was alone. At once, he felt drained. The morning’s heat pressed against his back, and he dropped his chin to study the uneven sand. It felt good to push his fingers into the spread of grains; to feel them brushing against his skin with warm roughness. If only this was enough. If only he had learned to appreciate this instead of pining away for greener pastures.

The Triforce of Power pushed away these weak thoughts and replaced them with its own insistence. It was a wine bottle ready to be uncorked; eager to spill out its contents for his tasting. Only he had never developed a palate for it. He could taste only spoiled bitterness.

 _If that is to be your life’s flavor, you should embrace it,_ Koume whispered.

 _Allow no one else to enjoy its taste. Keep it all to yourself,_ Kotake added.

_Swallow it whole._

_Savor it._

And beneath their voices, the Triforce of Power whispered, _Do it do it do it do it do_

#

Ganondorf studied his map through eyes darkened with troubled thoughts. His meeting with his mothers had done nothing to ease his mind. If anything, it had made things worse, and he had lay in bed all night, wide awake, thinking on his options. But there were no more opportunities for a better way of stopping what he had set into motion by killing King Daphnes. Hyrule was his, and however tenuous his hold was, he had to maintain it. And that meant tapping into things he had so far avoided. Was he ready to do that?

These thoughts had to be put momentarily aside when the door to Ganondorf’s map room banged open, and a young man came striding in with purposeful steps. Ganondorf had to do a double-take. He thought it was Link at first. But the tunic on this young man--identical in styling to Link’s, down to the belt and hat--was dark as pitch. 

“Darcel?” Ganondorf questioned once the young man had stopped in front of him. “What do you want? I’m busy.”

“It’s not Darcel. It’s Dark Link.”

“What…” Ganondorf frowned. “What’s gotten into you?”

Darcel--or Dark Link, as he now preferred--took another step towards Ganondorf. “You dodged me all day yesterday,” he accused. 

“I wasn’t here,” Ganondorf explained. “Something was brought to my attention. Link arrived at Kakariko Village early yesterday morning. He’s training with the princess’s nurse, Impa. I went to see with my own eyes, and then I went to the desert for a conference with some allies.”

“And what about me?” Dark Link asked. “I’m an ally! Why didn’t you confer with _me?”_

“Because you are blinded by your hatred for Link,” Ganondorf replied, tiredly. He felt as if he had gone over this conversation a hundred times.

 _“And you don’t hate him at all!”_ Dark Link shouted. “He’s working against us--you’ve now seen with your own eyes what Vaati was trying to tell you all along! Stop trying to protect him! Let me kill him! _I want to play my part!”_

Ganondorf was tired, and he had no patience for childish behavior. He let fly a sharp hand towards Dark Link. The young Hylian went down with a cry of pain, landing on his back on the carpet. Blood began to leak from a cut over his left eye; one of Ganondorf’s rings had sliced into his skin. 

“Listen to me,” Ganondorf ordered, speaking low so that Dark Link was forced to listen. “You will not play any part in this. It’s clear to me now you’re not as controlled as you led me to believe in the years I trained you. The last thing I need is a dangerous child with a short fuse running around and destroying the fragile network I’ve created over this land. Things are delicate right now, and you would be the equivalent of a raging bull in a pottery shop.”

“I would not,” Dark Link nearly whined.

Ganondorf closed his eyes for a moment and wished he could tell Dark Link of the promise made to protect him. But that would only spur the young man into reckless behavior. Ganondorf had to keep him in check. 

“You want to be useful?” Ganondorf asked, and he reached down to drag Dark Link up by the collar of his tunic. “Go and keep the princess company. Try to soften her up, and maybe she’ll give us some clue for how to find the third piece of the Triforce. Go on!” Ganondorf shoved Dark Link towards the door. After a final sullen look thrown over his shoulder, the young Hylian walked out of the room.

Once Dark Link was gone, Ganondorf returned his attention to his thoughts. No matter what, he had to do something about Link. To delay any longer could bring the same sort of disaster Dark Link was capable of, only in a different form. Perhaps there was a way to deter Link without harming him. 

“What did Vaati say? Link’s afraid of water?” Ganondorf mused aloud. This along with Dark Link’s strange turn towards copying his brother gave the Gerudo an idea.

#

In the dimness of the hall outside Ganondorf’s map chamber, someone stirred from his post against the wall when Dark Link slammed the door shut behind him. Dark Link’s head was bowed, but in the corner of his left eye he noticed Vaati sidle up to him. 

“Well,” the Wind Mage spoke in a tone of disappointment. “That went about as bad as we expected it to go, hmmm?”

“He says I’m dangerous,” Dark Link murmured.

“And you are!” Vaati said, his eyes bright like flames in the dim hall. “But in a good way,” he added kindly in the next breath. “Don’t listen to Ganondorf. I promised you your own game, right? I keep my promises.” Vaati craned his head up to lick off the blood that had pooled over Dark Link’s cut. Within its metallic flavor he could taste the darkness of the black heart it had pumped through over and over. “You are going to do very well, Dark Link,” the Wind Mage promised. 

Down the hall, another person stood in the shadows. They watched in silence as Vaati and the Hylian who was no longer Darcel walked away in the opposite direction. Dressed in what were once blue sheets from her bed, Zelda waited until the coast was clear before slipping out of the narrow alcove she had hidden herself in, and continuing through the castle on her way to escape. 

The tight-fitting outfit she wore didn’t hinder her like her usual dresses would have done. The outfit was the result of several days’ hard work. After whittling a chicken bone from a supper into a needle and carefully pulling free the stitching of her sheets’ hems for thread, Zelda had secretly crafted her new disguise whenever she was left unattended--which was surprisingly often. 

Her white pillowcases were turned into a high cowl that cloaked her face and throat--notably her lack of an Adam’s apple. She had braided her hair and hid most of its goldenrod color in strips of white cloth, leaving a portion of her bangs to obscure much of her blue gaze. It was one of the few aspects of herself she wasn’t able to change or disguise. Her chest was easier; she never was particularly busty. A shawl over her shoulders helped to hide her narrow, feminine shape. Zelda was inspired to mark the shawl with the symbol of the Sheikah--Impa’s symbol, one of strength and cunning.

Even with this obvious symbol of the Royal Family adorning her, it was a cakewalk to get past the stalfos that came to bring Zelda her next meal. She was already changed into her new clothes, and she was tense with readiness, for she expected a struggle. Her days growing up under Impa’s care were not idle; she had learned combat and stealth skills from the Sheikah. 

But Zelda found these skills were unneeded when the stalfos only looked at her with a puzzled expression. “Where is the princess?” it asked. 

“Er…” Zelda did her best to deepen her voice to that of a man’s. “I was wondering that myself,” she replied. “I came up here to see if she needed anything, and I found the room empty. Let me go look for her. You stay here in case she comes back.” And she walked right past the confused monster and down the tower stairs.

 _If I had known it would be as simple as walking out the door…_ Zelda slipped out of the castle and into the ruined gardens. The torched ground was beginning to crack around the castle, which had taken on a darker color. Zelda could see the glow of lava through the cracks. She quickened her pace, moving from cover to cover when she could, and sprinting at full speed when she couldn’t. In this fashion, she soon reached Hyrule Field where she set her sights on the distant Kakariko Village.

#

The whistle pierced the air with a brief, shrill _twee!_

_“Again!”_

Link groaned and rose up onto his feet. After steadying himself on his exhausted legs, he took a breath, bent his knees, and jumped up. His arms swung up at the top of his jump, and he attempted to tuck his knees while swinging his arms further back to drive his body into a flip. As with his first dozens of tries he failed to do this, and simply ended up falling hard to the rocky ground beneath him. 

_“No,_ Link! Knees to chest, not chest to knees!”

_Twee!_

_“Again!”_

Link cursed and slammed the ground with a fist. He was beginning to hate that whistle. But he took up a ready position once more. And again, he ended up on the ground when he failed to complete a solid back flip. 

Impa blew her whistle and urged him to rise. “Faster!” she drove when Link was slow to stand. 

It was Link’s second day of instruction under Impa. After the visit to the hall of heroes hidden behind the graveyard, he was at once thrust into training. Impa had first given Link a verbal rundown of the basics of the different skills he would be learning. Afterwards, she had taken his sword and shield away. 

“You don’t need them yet,” Impa had explained when Link attempted to protest. “You’ll get them back when I decide it’s time for you to learn to carry the extra weight when moving. Until then, they’ll be kept away.”

One small blessing had resulted from this prohibition. With Link’s sword free from the regimens of his training, it allowed a village craftsman to study it and size it up for a scabbard. Link had seen the drawings for the scabbard that morning, and it was what drove him to continue training through his pain as he tried--and failed--to land a back flip. 

“Shouldn’t I have a spotter?” Link asked in a tired voice after another failure. 

“Maybe,” Impa said, and she blew her whistle. “Rise, Link! You must be faster getting to your feet. I could have killed you three times already.”

“Oh, please do,” Link murmured.

_“What was that?”_

“Nothing, nothing…”

“That’s what I thought.”

In some ways, Impa was a lot harder on Link than Shade was so far. She was unrelenting in her drills. She constantly urged Link to move faster, hit harder, react smoother. She had given him a preview of the hand-to-hand combat he would be learning, and had floored him seconds into their first bout. Now she was having him practice back flips at the start of the path leading up to Death Mountain. The rocky ground was supposed to encourage Link to land on his feet. 

_“Ow,_ my knee--”

_Twee!_

_“Again!”_

The encouragement wasn’t working so far. 

Link ate dust and rock when he failed particularly badly on his latest flip, and he tasted blood when it sprouted in his mouth. He was starting to tire. He was going on only a few hours’ sleep and a meager breakfast--the Sheikah recipe again, something Impa referred to simply as “meal”. The burst of energy the meal had given Link was beginning to fade. He was also thirsty, and he voiced this when he rose to his feet. 

“You will be allowed a drink when you flip successfully,” Impa said.

Link glared at her. “Even the Gorons allowed me water,” he snapped.

“Then they were too soft on you,” Impa replied with a hard smile. She raised her whistle to her lips, but lowered it when a distant scream reached her ears. “That’s coming from the well,” Impa said. “Link, let’s go!” 

Impa took off down the descending path to where the village’s well was located. Link followed her closely. He forgot about his exhaustion in the wake of this new worry. Who was screaming, and why? 

Link and Impa arrived to find a small crowd had gathered around Anju, the cucco attendant whom Link was always helping when it came to keeping her errant birds penned. An overturned bucket sat at Anju’s feet, spilling water onto the ground. Anju kicked it aside when she ran into Impa’s arms. “There’s something in the well!” the young woman claimed. “I saw something in the well!”

The crowd of villagers instinctively retreated from the well, leaving Impa, Link, and Anju alone in the widened open space. Impa ushered the young woman back into the crowd and called to someone to collect Link’s weapons. 

The Hylian shield and Master Sword were soon thrust into Link’s hands. Armed with them, he walked with Impa towards the well. Neither of them suggested Anju’s words were delusional. Both of them knew the remaining population of Hyrule had a powerful enemy, so they approached the well on wary feet; tense and ready for any kind of attack.

The well sat at waist height for Link. He stepped up to it and leaned over the edge to peer down into the water that lapped a foot below the well’s upper edge. Link couldn’t suppress the shudder that rippled down his spine at the sight of the seemingly-bottomless water. As if in response to his fear, pockets of air rose up from the shadowy depths of the well water. When they broke the surface, the sound they made was like bubbling laughter. 

Link and Impa took several steps back when the water rippled with activity. The ripples converged at the center of the well and began to form the body of a young man who rose up as more and more of him was completed. A set of watery boots finished the form, and the man stood on the water’s surface with as much ease as Link and Impa stood on solid ground. He flipped forward, landing as lightly as a feather in front of the Sheikah and Hylian. 

“Link…” Impa didn’t have to say anymore. Link could see for himself: this strange being was a copy of him. 

The other Link studied his opponents through transparent eyes half-obscured by bangs that dripped water. When he spoke, his words fell like echoing drops of water in a deep cave. “Salutations,” the other Link greeted, and he bowed low. Link saw a replica of his own shield and sword on the form’s back. 

The watery Link straightened up. “I bring good tidings from King Ganondorf. He commends you for your efforts to grow strong, Link, but he advises you to not flirt with any ideas to oppose him. He would much rather you stay alive than become a sad example of fruitless martyrdom in Hyrule’s history.”

“Oh how kind of him,” Link snapped at his doppelganger. “Well, you can tell Ganondorf that I’m not going to stop until I’m strong enough to rescue Zelda and save Hyrule.” 

The copy clicked his tongue in pity; the sound was like cracking ice. “That’s not the answer my lord wanted to hear. In fact, I was told that if you refuse to step down, I was to step _up.”_ And he reached back to draw his transparent shield and sword. 

Impa placed a firm hand on Link’s shoulder when he made to step forward. “You’re not ready for this,” she whispered. “You know next to nothing about swordplay, Link!”

“Then neither should he,” Link reasoned.

“Let me fight him,” Impa insisted.

The copy spoke up. “I can’t allow that, Sheikah woman,” he said. “I will fight only Link.”

“Then be my guest and stand still while I rip you apart,” Impa retorted, and she darted at the copy, moving eerily fast. 

Link’s copy smirked as if amused before a blast of strange magic sent Impa flying back. She landed amongst the crowd and toppled many of them over. Villagers rushed to help not only her, but also the people she had inadvertently hit. 

“Perhaps I didn’t make myself clear,” the copy said. There was laughter in his voice when he spoke. “I will fight only Link.” 

Link tightened his grip on both sword and shield. “Then you’ll have me,” he agreed.

“No, Link--” Impa began, but she was tangled in the villagers, who all surged towards her in their efforts to give Link and his opponent more room. The watery copy marked their obvious fear with another amused smirk before rushing forward at Link with his blade at the ready. 

Link had hoped his doppelganger would be every bit like him--that is, just as inexperienced. This was the furthest thing from the truth. Link learned he was dealing with a foe far more skilled than himself when the copy’s sword got around his slow defense and sliced into his side. Link staggered back out of range as quickly as he could. Already he could feel blood dampening his tunic, but the wound was shallow. He tried to ignore the stinging pain as his copy held up his transparent sword. 

“First blood,” the copy remarked while the watery sword dripped pale pink drops to the ground. “That doesn’t bode well for you, Link. I will extend my offer to you one final time: Step down and throw away these hero fancies of yours, and I will spare your life.”

Link shook his head and raised his shield and sword. “Sorry,” he said to his copy in a strong voice. “But if my mentor was to find out I tucked tail and ran, he would not be happy. And I doubt even Ganondorf is as bad as Shade in his worse moods.”

The copy lowered his sword to his side. “Well then… Let’s continue on the path to your defeat.” He rushed Link again, leaving wet footprints on the grass in his wake. 

Link was better prepared this time. He blocked the first blow, and swung out with his blade. It met the copy’s sword with a clang and a splash of water. Link was dismayed to find the water-based weapon to be as solid as a real one. The shield was just as hard. It blocked Link’s second attempt to land a hit, and he retreated several steps to rethink an approach. He and his copy circled one another, looking for openings. 

“Your form is sloppy,” the copy taunted. He feigned an approach, and retreated with a laugh when Link rushed to block an attack that never came. “Clearly you’re inexperienced with a sword. You handle a shield well enough, however. I’ll praise you for that. But a pure defensive strategy won’t win you any battles.”

“For someone who doesn’t want me to gain an edge over Ganondorf, you’re open with advice,” Link snapped. His copy grinned and moved in to engage him. Link brought his sword up, and the two blades met with a resonating clang. Link felt his copy attempting to push him off balance, and he pushed back just as hard.

The doppelganger pouted behind his braced blade. “I’m merely echoing my lord’s concern for you, Link. You were _so_ much like a son to him, and could be again.”

“I have only one father,” Link snapped. He applied the strength he had developed on Death Mountain and pushed the copy away, who staggered several steps back in surprise. “He was a good man,” Link continued. “A far better man that Ganondorf could ever hope to be. He came from a long line of heroes, and I will continue to uphold that line to the best of my ability.”

 _“What_ ability?” the copy teased. “You are a weak branch on your family’s noble tree. No doubt your father is glad to have died early so that he didn’t have to witness the pathetic thing his son has grown to become.” 

Link felt a spike of anger, and he rushed his opponent. Goaded into an attack, he failed to react in time when his copy dropped down into the earth--taking on the form of pure water to hide in the dirt. Link slid to a halt on the wet grass and looked around. He never heard his doppelganger rise up out of the ground behind him. 

The copy reached out from behind Link and wrapped his hands around the Hylian’s nose and mouth. Link tensed, caught off guard, and his copy jumped up and over him. Link was arched into the same flip his copy took--only he didn’t land on his feet. He was instead slammed onto his back against the ground. 

The Master Sword was knocked out of Link’s hand along with the breath from his lungs; the latter bloomed as bubbles within the doppelganger’s watery palms. They were still pressed against Link’s face. The copy’s liquid arms twisted to allow him to turn and straddle Link’s chest. His body soaked Link’s tunic, and his hands flooded the Hylian’s nose and mouth with water.

Navi shot out of Link’s collar with the speed of an arrow and launched herself into the other Link’s face. The copy spared a hand to bat her away as if she were nothing more than a bug before returning to his efforts to drown Link. 

“That’s it,” the doppelganger whispered while Link struggled and flailed beneath him, inadvertently drawing more water into his lungs as he did. “Drown, little play-hero. Sink into the darkness and let it take you.” 

The copy cackled, but his amusement dried up in a cry of surprise when a ball of fire hit him in his chest. The water that made up his body hissed with evaporation, and the copy flipped backwards off of Link with fear in his transparent eyes. The steam had barely dissipated from the first attack when three more hit the copy in quick succession. 

With screams of rage the copy cast an eye around the huddled mass of onlookers in an attempt to narrow down his attacker. While he was still searching, a fifth ball of fire took out his head in a burst of water and steam. The copy’s body lost its form and fell to the ground as a small splash. Several balls of fire hit the puddle left behind until nothing remained save torched grass.

Link saw none of this. He was still on the ground, as pale as a fish and not breathing. Now unhindered by the doppelganger’s magic, Impa rushed forward towards the Hylian. She wasn’t the only one. Another person ran forward as well. His hands still smoked with traces of the magic he had launched at the copy. 

Impa cast one look at the stranger and knew in an instant this was no man. But the familiar blue eyes that stared at her from across Link implored for silence. Impa granted the request with a nod of her head, and lowered her hand to Link’s chest. She whispered a Sheikah spell, and Link’s body jerked with a sputtering cough. Impa and the stranger stepped back to give him room, and he rolled over onto his forearms to vomit water. Once his heaving had tapered off, he collapsed to the ground in an exhausted faint. 

Impa sighed with relief. “That was too close a call,” she whispered. “I’ll never forgive myself for letting him fight alone. He was too tired from my training to have any real chance.” 

“No,” spoke up the stranger. “He had to fight alone. Now he knows his weaknesses better. Now he’ll work harder to overcome them.”

“Who are you?” Impa asked. This was for the benefit of the watching villagers. Impa already knew who lay behind the disguise. 

The stranger raised his eyes from Link’s splayed form. “Call me Sheik.”


	15. On Dangerous Ground

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Link continues his training under Impa with the added companionship of Sheik, and Ganondorf and Vaati seek the escaped princess.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for your awesome support!
> 
> There is some MxM in this chapter--nothing more than heavy petting--along with a questionable act or two. 
> 
> Please enjoy, thank you!

# In the Shade of a Hero

### On Dangerous Ground

Zelda--now disguised as her new alter-ego Sheik--held the door to Impa’s house open while two villagers carried Link’s limp form within to a bed. Impa herself followed them, and as soon as the young Hylian was situated comfortably she thanked her fellow villagers and politely but firmly chased them out of her home. 

No sooner was the door closed than Zelda reached up and dropped her cowl. “What a relief--” she began.

Impa whirled around and glared at her. “Put that back on!” she hissed. She rushed to Zelda and seized the disguised princess by an arm to drag her away from Link’s bed. “He could wake up at any moment!” Impa continued while Zelda hastily pushed the cowl back up.

“So?” Zelda countered in a muffled voice. “I want him to know I’m all right!”

“No, Zelda,” Impa said. She shook her head gravely, shot another look at the unconscious Link, and pulled Zelda further away. “He mustn’t find out,” Impa continued, her voice low in a whisper. Zelda stayed silent and listened. “He is a chosen of the Goddesses.”

“I know,” Zelda murmured, and she raised her right wrapped hand to show the back where the faint glow of a hidden Triforce bloomed to life. It faded as Impa’s eyes widened. “Ganondorf has obtained the Triforce of Power,” Zelda explained. “He threatened lives to force me to open the path to the Sacred Realm. I received Nayru’s blessing of Wisdom, and he got Din’s Power. So that means Link has the Triforce of Courage…” The princess cast a warm smile at Link.

“He mustn’t know,” Impa repeated, and her charge turned a confused look onto her. “Link is training to become the hero we all need him to be. He doesn’t know the power he holds. He _can’t_ know this. You _do_ understand why?”

Zelda did not understand. “If Link knows he has a piece of the Triforce, he would have no reason to doubt himself!” she argued.

“And that would be his doom,” Impa said. “He might think he’s invincible, and he would attempt once again to breach the castle before he’s ready. The Triforce of Courage alone does not promise victory. It can accelerate Link’s growth, yes, but as he is now he would surely die if he attempted to enter Ganondorf’s castle. Our enemies expect him at any moment, and they are on much higher alert than weeks ago.”

“I was able to get out,” Zelda countered, sounding almost smug. “And I was dressed only in my altered bed sheets.” 

Impa reached out and fingered a loose hem. “Yes, well… You’ll need something more lasting if you’re going to keep up this disguise. I’ll have some better garments prepared for you. I’ll apply some of my people’s magic on them as well. It will help you to maintain your disguise better. Until then…” Impa reached up and brushed her hand along Zelda’s brow and the side of her face. “Your eyes are too recognizable,” Impa explained. “If you want to pass as a Sheikah, you’ll need red eyes.”

Zelda walked to a nearby mirror hanging on the wall. Her reflection revealed her altered gaze. With a small nod of her head, she accepted the change. “I won’t tell him anything,” she promised. “Not until you allow me.”

“Very good, _Sheik,”_ Impa said with a wan smile. “Now go to the washroom and collect the bandages and medicines there. I have to dress Link’s wound.”

Zelda hurried off to collect the supplies, and Impa returned to where Link rested in bed. She had his tunic cut off by the time Zelda returned, and she was feeling for any internal damage in his torso and arms. Zelda flushed at the sight of Link’s bared chest, and Impa, seeing the reaction, snapped, “You’ll need to learn to control your emotions around him if you want to maintain that disguise.” In a kinder tone she added, “We’re in luck. The wound is as shallow as it looks. It’s already stopped bleeding.” She accepted the medicines and bandages from Zelda and started work on Link’s wound.

Zelda took a seat on the edge of the mattress by Link’s head. She reached out and ran a finger along the scar that crossed his shoulder. “I noticed he was using his left hand while fighting,” she remarked.

“Yes. He suffered a blow to the shoulder during his foray into the castle. It caused significant damage to that arm--so much that he’s had to learn how to use the left arm in its place.”

Zelda marked a burn scar on the outside of Link’s right arm, and took in the faint bruises in his skin from his battle and training. Finally, she traced the vertical scar that ran down Link’s chest. Her hand stuttered away from the scar tissue, and she returned it to her lap. “He looks a lot stronger,” the princess said admiringly after noting the defined muscles beneath Link’s bruised skin. 

“Two weeks with the Gorons will do that,” Impa said. She was nearly finished with her work by now. “And as I said before, the Triforce has sped along his development. I’m surprised Link hasn’t questioned the abnormal growth. I wonder if he suspects anything...”

While Impa talked, Zelda reached out for Link’s left hand. The instant her right hand touched it, both of the Triforce pieces lit up, and Link’s brow furrowed in the first movements of consciousness. 

“Put that away!” Impa hissed. 

Zelda dropped the hand and quickly moved off of the bed. By the time Link’s eyes opened, his Triforce piece was dormant again. He took in Impa and the disguised Zelda with curious eyes before his gaze wandered around the room. He groaned and closed his eyes again. “I lost, didn’t I?”

“I think the more fitting phrase is ‘live to fight another day’,” Impa said with a kind smile. 

Link’s body sagged with defeat, and he opened his eyes to look again at Zelda. “Who are you?”

Zelda bowed to Link and introduced herself, “I am Sheik, a friend of Impa and a fellow Sheikah.”

“Sheik saved your life,” Impa added to Link. “He used Din’s Fire to destroy your doppelganger.”

“Wish I had thought of that,” Link murmured. “Oh, wait, I don’t even know that spell,” he added in a darker tone.

Impa laughed. “You’ll be learning it, I promise you. Don’t think one little scratch is enough to pause your training.”

“Impa,” Zelda tried to argue. “He needs rest--”

“I can’t afford rest,” Link cut in before Impa could open her mouth to say the same thing. “I need to learn to fight through the pain.”

“Spoken like a true hero,” Impa remarked with a smile. 

Link shook his head. “If I was a hero I wouldn’t flee when faced with more than a few inches of water. I’m a coward, Impa.”

“No, Link,” Impa argued, and Zelda shook her head. “You just need to get over this fear of water. But there are ways, and one of them is really very simple: If you can’t face your fear, find some way to work around it. Or better yet, use it to your advantage to get stronger. For example…” 

Impa rose up from her crouched position by Link’s bed. Her work was done; the wound was wrapped. Now she motioned for Link to rise out of the bed, which he did with barely any hint of pain. “Ready to try that back flip again? Follow me, Link.” She turned and walked out of the room.

Link sighed again. “She isn’t deterred easily,” he remarked to Sheik, who chuckled. The way Sheik’s eyes squinted with this act sparked a sense of familiarity in Link, and he asked, “Have we met before?”

“What makes you ask that?” Sheik asked. His impassive face didn’t suggest there was any connection between them, but perhaps that was only the nature of a Sheikah. 

Link couldn’t shake the feeling. He shrugged. “I don’t know. I just get a weird vibe from you.”

“Wow, thanks,” Sheik said with a brighter laugh.

“I don’t mean in a bad way!” Link was quick to say, and he shared the next laugh with Sheik. “Anyway… I should get out there, or Impa will find something worse to put me through.” Sheik chuckled again, and Link said around a half-laugh, “Stop laughing! I won’t be able to keep a straight face around her.”

Impa waited in an air of slight impatience by the well. Link walked to it with Sheik, and the last of his amusement died. He knew the look on Impa’s face. She had something planned. The villagers had sensed this, and a few curious onlookers watched from the edges of the square. 

When Link and Sheik reached the well, Impa gestured at it with a wave of her hand. 

“Climb up onto the wall, Link.”

Link did as he was told, although with a noticeable shake in his body. He climbed onto the top of the well wall and turned to face Impa when she prompted. Now his back was to the deep water a foot below his heels. The wall was wide enough for his boots to rest comfortably without any overhang. 

Impa smiled up into Link’s pale face and pulled a familiar whistle out of her pocket. “You’re going to back flip and come down exactly in the same spot. If you fail to do so, you’ll most likely fall into that water.”

Link understood now, and he cast a frightened glance down at the water behind him. He could refuse and face Impa’s wrath--as well as Shade’s eventually--or he could attempt something he knew he couldn’t do and fall into the deep abyss where he was convinced some new danger lurked, hoping to drown him in its watery embrace. He looked to Sheik as if for help. As a fellow Sheikah, perhaps he could stop Impa. But Sheik looked on, all amusement gone. His head moved in a subtle nod of encouragement.

The whistle blew-- _twee!_ Link jerked out of his thoughts and nearly tumbled back into the water. He regained his balance with a quick motion of his arms and turned a pleading look onto Impa. She stared back coldly, the whistle poised between her lips. 

Everyone was watching--Impa, Sheik, and the collection of villagers that was steadily growing. Link gritted his teeth and once again considered refusing. But the threat of harsh punishment outweighed the threat of death by drowning. He leapt up with arms swinging and legs tucking.

And he came down on bent legs, his feet firm on the stone of the wall. The world had tilted around him during his flip, but now it was upright once again, and there were people cheering him for his success. 

Impa blew her whistle three times in quick succession, and Link responded in turn, executing three back flips with barely a pause between them. Once he had steadied himself after the third flip, he flipped forward off of the well. He staggered upon landing, and Sheik rushed forward to catch him.

“Good job,” Sheik whispered. 

Link had time for a quick smile in return before Impa pulled him out of Sheik’s arms and into a friendly headlock. “Took you long enough!” she said as she knuckled his hair. Link staggered away with an almost drunk grin. 

“Now!” Impa called. “Go put on a new tunic and collect your equipment. You’re going to do it again--this time with the added weight. Then we’re going to work on dodging incoming attacks, and scaling walls, and agility, and…”

Link sighed while Impa prattled on, and he heard a laugh beside him. He turned to catch Sheik’s amused eye and again felt the strange tug of familiarity to the other man. “Are you sure we haven’t met before?” Link asked him. 

“Um…”

_“Link!_ Are you listening to me?”

Link snapped his attention back to Impa. “Yes, ma’am!”

“Don’t _ma’am_ me, I’m not that old! Get a move on! We haven’t got all day!”

“Yes, ma’am!” Link said again. Countering Impa’s narrowed gaze with a grin, he turned and ran back to her house for his equipment.

#

Ganondorf was not in the mood for bad news. He was having difficulties convincing his old Gerudo tribe to stand alongside him against the rebellions in Hyrule. Yet Nabooru, his once second-in-command, had convinced her fellow Gerudo that Ganondorf was not a man to respect and, therefore, not a man to support. So far, every one of Ganondorf’s messengers had met an untimely death in the Zora River where it ran through the Gerudo Valley. Perhaps a less polite approach was needed. 

Dark Link strolled uninvited into Ganondorf’s study just as the Gerudo was preparing to leave. Forced to abandon his plans, and tired from sleepless nights, Ganondorf wasn’t pleased, and he snapped out at the Hylian, “What do you want now?”

Dark Link’s words cut through Ganondorf’s irritation as cleanly as a sword. “The princess is missing.”

Ganondorf at first didn’t believe him. He paused in his pacing and turned fully to Dark Link. “Excuse me?”

“You mean you didn’t know?” Dark Link asked in return, looking stunned himself. “I discovered a stalfos in her room just now. Apparently he’s been sitting in there for five days, waiting for Zelda to return because some mysterious man told him the princess had escaped!”

“What mysterious man?” Ganondorf asked. Dark Link shrugged. “Well go find out! Get a description!”

Dark Link momentarily bowed his head in shame. “I can’t. I… I got angry at the stalfos and beheaded it.”

“You _what?”_

“It’s your fault!” Dark Link accused before Ganondorf could get much farther. “I’m stuck in here for days on end with nothing to do… I get a little stir-crazy!”

With a roar of rage, Ganondorf whipped his arms out to the sides, and two trails of fire bloomed to life. They streaked across the floor towards Dark Link, passing him on either side with barely inches to spare before they hit the wall in twin explosions of sparks and brimstone. 

Ganondorf approached Dark Link, who stood paralyzed in the wake of the near-miss. After seizing the Hylian by his collar, Ganondorf lifted him up off of the floor. “I’ve made mistakes with you,” he admitted, speaking into Dark Link’s face. “But a stronger person would curb their anger when necessary.”

“Oh, like you did just now?” Dark Link countered through his constricted throat. 

Ganondorf dropped Dark Link to the floor, but the young man recovered quickly and backed up two steps. They glared at each other.

Ganondorf pointed towards the door behind Dark Link. “You want out of these walls? Go out and find the princess.”

Dark Link shook his head. “No. I have other duties. I’m not going to do your work for you. Vaati has plans for me--”

“You work for _me!”_

“No, he works for me,” Vaati’s voice called, and he stepped into the light with the hints of wind swirling about the bottom hem of his cloak. Those winds died when he walked up to stand beside Dark Link. 

Ganondorf regarded Vaati with a look of growing rage. “So you’re finally admitting to the fact that you’re a traitor?” he asked in a growl.

“Of course not,” Vaati said with a flippant toss of a pale hand. “Think about it, you hot-headed fool. Dark Link works for me, and I work for you. Therefore, he is working for you. I just… supervise.” Vaati slung an arm over Dark Link’s shoulders and pulled him closer to his side. The Wind Mage’s cheek pressed against Dark Link’s as if the two were the closest of friends. 

“He’s agreed to do a small favor for me,” Vaati continued. Dark Link glared at Ganondorf, daring him to object. Pressed cheek to cheek with Vaati’s bright, enthusiastic smile, it was a startling contrast. “In exchange, I am giving him Lake Hylia to lord over to his heart’s content.”

Ganondorf’s complexion darkened further. “You can’t cut up my land as if it was a pie!”

“Watch me,” Vaati growled, and his smile dropped to a threatening glower. “I helped you obtain this land. I deserve a share--and so does Dark Link. He convinced the princess to open the Sacred Realm, remember? She would have only done that for an old friend.”

“The princess is gone now,” Ganondorf reminded Vaati.

“Easily solved,” Vaati said. “Kakariko. Impa is there, and we know Link arrived earlier this week. That’s where the princess would have gone.”

Ganondorf noted the way Dark Link’s hands tightened into fists at the mention of his brother’s name. The Gerudo pointed a finger at the young Hylian and said, “You’re not going this time. I’ll take Vaati instead.”

Dark Link’s eyes widened with anger, and he opened his mouth to protest. Vaati at once pushed him away from Ganondorf and quickly soothed his rage. 

“Relax,” the Wind Mage whispered, out of range of Ganondorf’s hearing. “Just bear with it for now. You’ll have your chance soon enough, and Link will die then. All right?” Dark Link gave a grudging nod. “Good child. Now run along.” At Vaati’s urging, Dark Link turned and left the room. The Wind Mage watched him with a look of adoration tainted with a hint of malice.

#

From her perch atop a roof, Zelda looked down with her altered red eyes at Link, who was standing in a rocky area of land close by the entrance to Death Mountain’s pass. Her fingers plucked idly at a lyre every so often, trying out various nameless tunes. The lyre was a gift from Impa--just something to keep the princess’s mind busy. She had given it to Zelda shortly after the princess’s arrival under her disguise as Sheik. 

During one of the rare breaks Link was allotted for sleep within his strict training schedule, Zelda had sat down with Impa, and the two had shared a few hours discussing each other’s experiences since Ganondorf’s coup. Zelda had found it hard to tell her nurse about Darcel’s frightening change, and her later weakness at having given in to his threats by agreeing to open the path to the Sacred Realm. 

After hearing this, Impa was anything but disappointed with Zelda. “You were very strong to endure what you did,” the nurse said, while Zelda cried silently so as to not wake Link. “You did what you thought was best--and it was, in a sense. No further lives were lost, and you only sped along Ganondorf’s seizure of the Triforce. That was bound to happen. Some things are predetermined, Zelda. Time and time again, the Triforce has been found by an evil will and broken, yet always it is returned to its original state when good succeeds over that evil. I don’t think this time will be any different.”

Zelda plucked a series of short notes across the lyre and, catching the sound, Link glanced up at her--or him, as he saw her--with a friendly smile. As Impa had instructed, Zelda had kept her identity a secret around Link, but “Sheik” and Link had still become close friends. Zelda’s new clothes, woven by her nurse, helped her to maintain a deeper voice without any effort on her part, so it was easy to talk to Link without worries of a slip-up. If there were other benefits the clothes’ magic provided, Zelda hadn’t yet discovered them. 

Link’s attention was drawn away from Sheik when Impa called his name. The Hylian snapped his eyes forward to the Sheikah, who was leaning against the wall of a house. She looked confident and relaxed. Link was confident too, but hardly relaxed. He was nervous, for he was about to prove his skills in magic. He was learning hand-to-hand combat skills, agility, speed, and stealth well enough. The magic was coming harder. Two days of hard drilling had nearly spent him. Now he had to try to reproduce the magic under the pressure of command. 

“No hesitation,” Impa said to Link while she walked her whistle back and forth between her fingers. “You won’t have time to hesitate in battle. These skills must come as easily to you as the ability to move a muscle. You should be able to cast them with little thought when necessary.” In a blur of movement Impa raised her whistle to her lips and blew hard. 

_Twee!_

_“Din’s Fire, now!”_

Link was already moving before Impa had finished the second syllable of her command. He brought his hands together before his chest and felt the warm glow of magic form between them. Fire bloomed as a tight ball between his palms, and Link spread his hands apart. The fire expanded with this motion and enveloped him in a dome of flame that stretched for several feet before dissipating into thin air. It left the rocky ground charred and the air crackling. 

Before the flames had entirely died, Impa blew her whistle a second time and ordered, _“Nayru’s Love!”_

Link raised his hands and brought them back down, sweeping them out at the same time as if spreading a cloth. Glimmers of light fell from his fingertips, and a blue, transparent shell of protective magic formed around him. 

Impa ran forward and stopped to aim a high kick at Link’s head. Her foot hit only the firm shell, and she blew her whistle a third time. _“Farore’s Wind!”_ she commanded. 

Link didn’t hear the whistle or command; the shield muted all sound. But he was able to read Impa’s lips. This was the part he was dreading, but he traced his finger through the air in a small sign and hoped for the best. He was gone the next second.

Zelda started and turned to look behind her when she heard a cry of alarm. Link had appeared three feet above the roof, and he dropped like a stone. A sharp gasp of pain underlined the hard thump of his body hitting the shingles. “Gotta work on that landing,” Zelda remarked to Link when he gained his feet. 

Navi had emerged to comfort Link with her presence. He smiled sheepishly at both her and Sheik, but the look dropped into shame when Impa appeared on the roof in her own burst of Farore’s Wind.

“What was that?” the Sheikah asked. She folded her arms and glared down at Link, who had taken a seat on the roof. “You were supposed to reappear by the well.”

Link frowned and looked away. “I don’t know what happened,” he admitted in a sullen tone. Navi perched on his shoulder.

Impa shook her head. “You must work on it. The other two spells are fine, but I’m not going to accept a half-assed teleportation spell. You will practice it until it’s perfect. Do you understand?”

“Yeah, sure,” Link grumbled.

“Look at me when I’m talking to you!”

Link raised his eyes only to glare at Impa, and Zelda saw his hands tighten into fists for a brief moment. It didn’t last long before his face and body sagged. “I’ll work on it,” he promised.

The distant whinny of a horse drew Zelda’s attention. She looked out across the village from her high vantage point and saw an all-too-familiar Gerudo stallion heading into the village, flanked by a white horse with a purple-clad figure atop it. Zelda dragged her fingers across her lyre in a discordant warning, and the sound pulled both Impa’s and Link’s attention. Zelda pointed out towards the approaching threat, and Impa paled when she saw who was arriving. 

“Him again,” she hissed. To Link she said, “I want you to hide. No doubt he knows you’re working against him. That might be why he’s here.” There was another, more likely reason why Ganondorf was visiting Kakariko Village--to search for the princess--but Impa didn’t volunteer this theory to Link. _“Go,_ Link!” the Sheikah insisted when Link hesitated. 

With clear reluctance, Link climbed down from the roof. He considered hiding in Impa’s house, but the windmill caught his eye. There was a maintenance tunnel built high up into it, behind the rotating blades. Link found the door to the tunnel and climbed up to it. From this vantage point he could watch Ganondorf’s and Vaati’s approach and still be close enough to hear much of what the Gerudo said in his carrying voice. 

Once a significant portion of wary villagers had gathered--with Impa in the front as her usual role of protector--Ganondorf addressed them. “Greetings, my loyal subjects,” he began. As before, a ripple of unease and resentment swept through the crowd at his words. “My friend and I are here for one purpose only, and then we will leave you all to return to your happy lives--but only if you cooperate.” Ganondorf paused to mark many of the villagers before he announced, “Princess Zelda is missing from my castle.”

Another ripple, this one of surprise and hope. 

Ganondorf met the villagers’ reactions with a look of tired scorn. “We will search the village for her. You will allow us, or you will die.” With a slight nod to Vaati, Ganondorf dismounted his horse and stalked off to begin his search of the village’s west side; Vaati took the east. 

In his high hiding place, Link was stunned with shock. Questions ran through his mind in a blur. Zelda had escaped the castle? She was free of Ganondorf? If so, where was she? If Ganondorf thought she had enough time to escape to Kakariko Village, did that mean she was missing for a while? 

As Link pondered these worries in a never-ending circle of thought, Vaati approached a suspicious person on the ground level of the village. The man had caught the Wind Mage’s eye, and now Vaati pushed his way through a group of villagers to approach him. Dressed in blues and whites, and marked by the symbol of the Sheikah, the young man stared calmly back at Vaati from behind a high cowl. “Who are you?” Vaati asked him, eyes narrowed.

“I am Sheik,” the man replied. 

Vaati hummed a thoughtful sound and circled Sheik. He reached out to finger the man’s long braid of blonde hair. “Quite the tail for a male,” Vaati remarked.

“Says the Wind Mage with long, lilac hair,” Sheik retorted. 

Vaati glared at Sheik’s back and tugged sharply on the braid, forcing the man to bend his head back. “I have a feeling,” Vaati murmured while Sheik stared at him with some fear. “that you know where Zelda is hiding. In fact, I think you _are_ her.”

“It would be some feat even for the princess of Hyrule to pass herself off as a man,” Sheik said. 

Vaati released the braid, and Sheik dropped his head forward while Vaati circled back to his front. He stood still as the Wind Mage regarded him with a calculating red gaze. 

Vaati stepped forward, smiled winningly, and struck out with his hand as quick as a biting snake. Sharp-nailed fingers dug into the fork of Sheik’s legs, and he uttered a soft sound of discomfort. But whatever Vaati was hoping to discover eluded him. With a seething look, he retracted his hand and stalked off to continue his search for the princess.

Zelda hugged her chest and bowed over as if sick. She felt Impa’s hands on her shoulders before too long. 

“Are you all right?” Impa asked in a low voice. 

“Fine,” Zelda replied. Her voice trembled. “He’s just so _foul._ I could hardly stand him touching me. Impa, have I told you before that I’m glad you think of everything?”

Impa allowed herself one small laugh. With a grimmer face, she marked Vaati’s progress through the village’s east side and turned her head in search of Ganondorf. But the Gerudo was out of sight. “Where did he go?” Impa murmured. 

Ganondorf was no longer on the ground. He was descending the stairs in the windmill’s maintenance tunnel. He had used his own darker magic to teleport to the passage after seeing a flash of green within the lower entrance. Now he stepped down from the last stair between the lower and upper hall and approached Link on silent feet. Even so, the Hylian heard him, and he whirled around to fix wide eyes on Ganondorf. 

“Impa taught you well,” Ganondorf remarked, impressed. 

Link said nothing. He only took a step back. Behind him, the open doorway of the passage was a few short feet away from his boot heels. The blades of the windmill passed by the entrance at regular intervals, alternating the light in the passage between dim and bright. When each bright interval revealed how much closer Ganondorf had drawn, Link took a step back. But he had less room to back up than Ganondorf had to move forward, and eventually he took a step back into empty air. He gasped, and his arms flailed for some hold as his body tipped back. 

Ganondorf closed the final few feet in a blur and seized hold of the front of Link’s tunic before the Hylian could fall out of reach. 

Link stopped falling with a jolting halt. He felt himself tip forward when Ganondorf pulled him back into the safety of the passage. He didn’t relax; not even when both of his boots were flat on solid ground again. Ganondorf was only a foot away. Link wished he had his shield and sword, but they were in Impa’s house. Unprepared as he was, Link didn’t consider teleporting away. Something--perhaps curiosity--kept him from fleeing. 

Ganondorf studied Link with a look bordering on pride--and disappointment. “I thought I had made my message clear: If you stand against me, you will die.”

Link was quick with his answer. “I’m not about to step aside and allow you to continue your takeover of a land that doesn’t belong to you.” 

Ganondorf shook his head. “And you think this land belongs any more to the Hylian race than it does to me? My people have suffered for generations in that desert.” Ganondorf pointed west in the general direction of the Gerudo lands. “And it’s all because some foolish ancestor decided to make war. The battle was lost, and the Gerudo were banished.”

“So repeating your ancestor’s mistakes is supposed to save your people from their miserable lives?” Link asked. “The point of having a past and a history is to learn what was right and was wrong--to learn from mistakes and make oneself better. You’re doing no such thing. You’ve ruined countless lives and plan to ruin even more. And I won’t stand for it. I come from a line of heroes, and I will uphold the duty required of me to protect this land as much as I can from people like you and Vaati.”

“And people like your brother,” Ganondorf tacked on. He had hoped to snuff out Link’s righteous tone, and in this he succeeded. Link’s determined expression faltered, and the first hint of doubt worked into his eyes.

“…Darcel? What about him?”

“You know he’s working for me,” Ganondorf said. “Unless… you were hoping that was a ruse?” Ganondorf had to laugh when Link’s eyes verified this faint hope. “I thought you were smarter. You must know your brother despises you for the attention you’ve garnered from Zelda--attention he’s always felt was rightfully his as much as yours. He is determined to kill you, Link. He has fashioned himself into a sinister reflection of you--so much so that he now calls himself Dark Link.”

Link shook his head and took a step back. “You’re lying. Darcel would never--”

“Your brother has changed,” Ganondorf cut in. His eyes shifted towards the open doorway at Link’s back. “Most of the fault lies with Vaati.”

“But not all,” Link snapped with a glare at the Gerudo.

“No,” Ganondorf admitted. “In my efforts to protect him--to protect _both_ of you--I may have made Darcel worse.”

Link shook his head. “I neither need nor want your protection. In fact, you should worry about protecting yourself. Once I’m strong enough, I’m coming after you and Vaati. I’ll take back Hyrule and return it to the ones who are supposed to rule. And I’ll take my brother back as well.” 

Ganondorf’s yellow eyes hardened to a dark gold, and his presence seemed to fill the narrow maintenance tunnel even more than it did already. “Then be prepared to meet your match and more, false hero,” the Gerudo rumbled in a threatening voice. Link’s own blue eyes sharpened at the challenge. “Until we meet again,” Ganondorf concluded. He disappeared in a swirl of black magic, reappearing seconds later by his and Vaati’s horses. 

Link heard Ganondorf call to the Wind Mage, but Vaati didn’t heed the call. In fact, Link couldn’t even see the distinct purple garb. With a foreboding feeling, he hurried out of the windmill’s tunnel and down the slopes to Impa’s house, where he collected his equipment. He left the house and hurried towards the east side of the village where Vaati was last seen. 

Link arrived in time to see a door to one of the villager’s homes blow out under a gust of wind. A startled but fortunately unharmed man tumbled out after it in the force of that same wind. Vaati strolled out of the open doorway and approached the villager, who was still gaining his feet. 

“We know you’re hiding the princess--” Vaati began. A movement in the corner of his eye made him pause, and he whirled around, firing out a cutting arc of magic from his fingertips before he could even determine who was approaching him. He saw a flash of green. 

The flash of green sprung over the arc of wind, twisted over Vaati’s head, and came down behind him. A quick leg swept Vaati’s feet out from beneath him, and he fell hard to his back on the ground. When he tried to rise, he found a sword pointed at his throat. With sharp teeth bared, Vaati followed the line of the blade up to Link, who was holding it rock steady. The Hylian had a determined expression on his face.

“The power of this sword was enough to undo the spell you had cast on my friend Saria,” Link said to Vaati while the watching village held its collective breath. “I wonder what it would do to you. I’m sure you won’t get away with just a little scar next time.”

“I doubt you could manage to use that blade against a person,” Vaati said.

“You’re more demon than person,” Link countered.

Vaati smirked. “Fair enough,” he relented, and he tilted his head back, exposing more of his pale neck. “Then strike, child.”

Link’s sword wavered, and his eyes narrowed for a moment. “No,” he said. “I won’t kill you here. Ganondorf would only retaliate against the people of this village for the death of his lapdog.”

_“What_ did you call me?” Vaati hissed, his eyes flashing.

“When we face each other again,” Link continued, failing to see the anger in Vaati’s eyes, “it will be in a fair battle. We’ll see who is truly stronger then. Until that time, leave this village and don’t return. We are not hiding Zelda. If she was here, I’d be the first to know.” Link drew his sword back to his side to allow Vaati the room to rise. He did not let down his guard, and he stood his ground when Vaati pressed close to him almost nose to nose.

“If I hadn’t already promised your life to someone else, I would gut you with that blade,” Vaati hissed. “You are a child plodding around in your ancestor’s boots. They are too big for you, and soon you will stumble in them.” Vaati spat in Link’s face, turned around, and stalked away to where Ganondorf was waiting by the horses. The two men rode out of the village as soon as Vaati was mounted, and the village released a collected sigh of relief. 

The villager who was targeted by Vaati walked to Link. “Thank you,” he said with a bow of his head. 

Link wiped the spit from his cheek with a faintly irritated look. “It was nothing,” he said, and he turned a smile onto the man. Villagers were moving in towards the man and Link now. Many of them voiced their relief to find both men all right, and a few more offered their gratitude for Link’s hand in warding off Vaati. Link repeated his assurances that it was nothing; anyone would have done the same; it was hardly worth so much praise; and so forth until he was able to extract himself from the crowd. He barely had time to catch a breath before he felt Impa’s hand on his shoulder. 

“Excellent job, Link,” Impa praised. “You handled yourself very well. If you had risen to Vaati’s taunt and killed him there, I would have lost all hope for you. But you surprised me--and that’s a good thing,” she added with a smile.

“But,” Impa continued, “don’t think this little interruption has gotten you off the hook. I want you to get back to practicing Farore’s Wind. When you think you’ve got it, come find me.”

Link nodded. “Let me just put my stuff back and get some water--”

“No,” Impa cut in. “No breaks or relief. Get it done.” She walked away.

The villagers were beginning to disperse; to return to their lives and duties. Link stood apart from the shrinking crowd with his arms crossed and his shoulders hunched. He thought about refusing Impa’s order, but like at the well a week ago, the threat of punishment deterred him. 

The village was too busy for Link to concentrate. He left it for the quiet of the Death Mountain Pass. In front of the gaping mouth of Dodongo Cavern, he used the Master Sword to mark a circle in the dirt. He was generous, giving the circle a diameter of several feet. 

It wasn’t generous enough. Link signed for Farore’s Wind over and over, and each time he made to teleport into the circle he reappeared outside of it, and several feet above the ground. Link’s shoulders and back soon began to ache from taking the brunt of his drops. He lay on the ground after another countless try and felt his muscles twitching as the pain burned through them.

“Hey.”

Link craned his head back and looked at the upside-down view to see Sheik standing a few feet away. The Hylian rolled over onto his stomach and pushed himself onto his feet. Sheik was closer by the time he straightened up. There was a look of concern in the Sheikah’s eyes.

“You’re not having much luck, I take it.”

Link shook his head and brushed dust from his bangs. “I can teleport just fine,” he said. He waved a frustrated hand. “It’s the landing that’s the problem. I keep reappearing in thin air, and way off target!”

“Maybe it’s because you always have your head in the clouds?” Sheik suggested with a hint of a laugh in his voice. Link frowned. “Hey, I’m only kidding. Come on, stand straight and let me make sure the problem isn’t physical.”

Link straightened his shoulders and lifted his head, and Sheik’s hands began to rove over him. The fingers marked the joints and prodded each limb. The palms pressed against Link’s back and chest, first individually and next together. His head was tilted front to back, and side to side. The touch reminded Link so much of Zelda that he asked, “Did you ever meet the princess?”

“Once,” Sheik replied. “When I visited Impa at the castle. We didn’t speak much, though.”

“It’s just weird,” Link said. “You remind me so much of her. It’s almost as if she’s right beside me.”

“Well, I’ll take that as a compliment,” Sheik said. He stepped back from Link. “You seem fine. Let me see you try again.”

Link nodded and took a few steps back. He signed for Farore’s Wind, and his face at once paled. He put a hand over his mouth and staggered away three steps before he heaved a splattering of half-digested meal.

“You’re pushing your magic too far,” Sheik observed. He watched Link heave with a detached eye. “How many times have you tried to teleport in the last half hour?”

Link spat a string of drool and wiped his mouth clean. “Almost a dozen,” he replied in a raspy throat.

Sheik tutted. “You need to take a break, or you’ll tear yourself apart.”

“Impa said--”

“Impa didn’t assume you would plunge so recklessly into this to please her,” Sheik cut in. He took a seat on a flat rock and patted the empty space beside him. “Come on, sit down and have some water. You’ll only be worse if you’re dehydrated.”

Sheik’s reasoning gave Link the excuse to put aside his efforts for the moment. He took the offered seat, as well as the water skin that hung on Sheik’s belt. The water soothed his roughened throat. He fell to taking small sips while Navi and Sheik shared a quiet moment of bonding. In front of them, the pass dipped down below two low rock walls, offering a view of Kakariko Village and some of Hyrule Field beyond it. The faintest spot of white suggested Castle Town’s curtain wall.

“You can see almost all of Hyrule from the summit,” Link said, unprompted. “When I was with the Gorons, I would climb up at night to see the stars, and… Well, I guess to get away from all of this hero pressure.” He paused to suck in a bracing breath. “Anyway, I fell asleep up there more than once, and when I woke up, the sun would be just peeking over the mountain range. It lit up everything. I could see the Lost Woods, and Lon Lon Ranch, and the glimmer of water that was Lake Hylia.”

“It sounds beautiful,” Sheik remarked.

“It is,” Link said with a nod. He took another sip of water before propping the water skin against the rock between his legs. “I want to make sure it stays that way.”

Sheik patted Link’s knee. “You will,” he said. 

Link laughed. “You even sound like Zelda. She never doubted me. I could tell her I was going to the moon, and she would ask me to bring back some moon rocks for her.”

Sheik chuckled, and for the next few minutes he and Link spent time imagining various impossible journeys, and the types of adventures they would accomplish during them. The color gradually returned to Link’s face, and he stopped slouching.

“I want to try again,” Link decided.

“Are you sure?” Sheik asked. Link nodded and stood up; Navi returned to his collar. “Take it slow.”

“I’m feeling better,” Link assured Sheik. He beckoned the Sheikah to follow him. “Come on, you’re going to be my motivation.”

“How so?” Sheik asked. His eyes widened when Link took hold of his hands.

“I want to show you the view,” Link replied. 

“Link, you have trouble with a few feet. We’re nowhere near the peak.” There was a shake in Sheik’s voice.

“I’m plunging recklessly,” Link said with a laugh. His thumb marked the sign for Farore’s Wind against the back of Sheik’s palm.

“Link--” Sheik’s voice was ripped away by the wind that kicked up around him and Link. Death Mountain Pass vanished in a swirl of light and dust to be replaced almost at once by rocky walls. It was the hard edges of the peak. Link had managed the magic, and both his and Sheik’s feet were firmly on the ground.

Link opened his eyes and blinked dust from his lashes. He looked as amazed as Sheik to see the magic had worked. His face brightened with joy, and he voiced a whoop that echoed down the mountain.

“You maniac,” Sheik said, still with the shake in his voice. He punched Link in the upper arm, and the Hylian feigned grave injury. Together, their eyes turned to the view. It was exactly as Link had described, and they took seats on a flat ledge to drink in the sight.

Sheik pointed towards the horizon. “I think that’s Lake Hylia.” 

Link’s eyes caught the glimmer, and he nodded. “Yep.” He sighed next, and Sheik turned a questioning look onto him. “Nothing.”

“It’s something,” Sheik insisted. He poked Link in the ribs to encourage him. “Come on. Hiding all of your feelings might be the reason why you’re having so much trouble with magic.”

“I managed fine just now,” Link said with a slight pout.

“You were in a better mood. You were relaxed and not under any pressure. Magic is fueled by one’s spirit and inner strength. If those are out of balance, the magic won’t come as easily, or not at all. You have to learn to be balanced even in the midst of turmoil. You have to maintain control. That’s what Impa’s been trying to teach you this past week. It’s at the core of every lesson.”

Link groaned and dropped his head to his hands. His fingers threaded through his bangs, disheveling them. “All right. It’s just… Sometimes I wonder if things would have been better if I had listened to Darcel. The day before he ran away to the Lost Woods, he was talking about leaving--about starting a new life somewhere else.” Link raised his head and looked to the glimmer of water again. “If I had listened to him, we could have been away from here before all this trouble started, and before he got wrapped up in it.”

Sheik reached up to smooth down Link’s tousled bangs. “What may or may not have happened in the past has no bearing on the present. Only what _did_ happen. And what did happen is that Darcel was lost, and you were chosen to right this world’s wrongs. Perhaps somewhere along that journey, you’ll have the chance to right Darcel’s wrongs, too. Maybe he’ll come back to you then.”

Link shook his head. “It’s too late. He’s killed people. Even if I help him, how can I ever forgive him?”

“I don’t know,” Sheik admitted. “That’s something you’ll have to decide when the time comes.”

“I hope that time isn’t when we cross swords,” Link said with a shudder. His hand caught Sheik’s before it fell away. “Thank you--for the words, the encouragement, the motivation… It means a lot to me. It’s like Zelda never left.” He paused, cursed, and winced. “Sorry. I keep comparing you to her. It’s not because I’m ungrateful, though, or that I find you less a friend than her.”

“You miss her,” Sheik said. “It’s only natural you would seek out her aspects in those around you. And who knows?” Sheik shrugged almost cheerfully. “I never meant to stay in Kakariko this long. I was only visiting, but being here with you has made me want to stay. Perhaps the Goddesses sent me in Zelda’s stead to give you the support and motivation the princess is unable to provide.”

“So the Goddesses sent you to be my friend?” Link asked.

“Yeah,” Sheik answered, nodding. “Or anything else you need.”

“What I _need_ is a way to fix everything,” Link said with a hollow laugh.

Sheik squeezed Link’s hand. “I’m sorry. I can’t provide that. But I’m here if you need help with carrying the burden.”

Link managed a smile. “Thanks,” he replied, and he kissed Sheik. Or perhaps Sheik kissed him. Link didn’t know the details. He only knew it was what he needed.

#

Impa marked Link from head to feet, and back again, wondering if this time the Hylian had it in him to manage Farore’s Wind. He looked confident enough with a straight back and level chin, and determination in his eyes. But he had looked that way before his last attempt.

“All right,” Impa said after her inspection. She and Link were in the same spot as his earlier test. “I know you’re capable of Din’s Fire and Nayru’s Love, so I won’t test you on those. Let’s see Farore’s Wind now.”

Link swallowed and nodded. He signed the spell and vanished in a burst of wind, and Impa looked to the well. A gust there indicated Link’s arrival. He looked around himself as if stunned and waved at Impa. The Sheikah’s hard face betrayed her relief when she chuckled. Another burst of wind announced Link’s return, and he poked Impa in the ribs from behind her.

“You--!” Impa spun around and drew Link into a gentle headlock. “You little brat,” she remarked playfully, and she mussed Link’s hair. He protested and pushed at her arm. 

“All right, all right.” Impa let Link go. “I’m very proud of you, Link. All that practice yesterday must have paid off.”

“Yeah,” Link agreed. “Sheik gave me some good advice. He said magic is about inner strength and spirit, and that I have to maintain control over both of them even at the hardest times. He said that’s what you’ve been trying to teach me.”

“I have,” Impa confirmed. “And I’m glad you were able to get control. You’re an excellent student, Link, and a quick learner. And to celebrate the end of your first week of training, we’ll have a proper dinner tonight.”

“And a full night’s rest?” Link suggested as Impa walked away.

“Don’t push it,” the Sheikah called over her shoulder.

Link sighed, rolled his eyes, and wondered when he would next get more than four hours of sleep. He soon fell into an amble around the village, as he knew Impa would refuse any help in the kitchen. She preferred things to be as much under her control as possible. Link supposed that was what made her the best to teach him magic.

At these thoughts, Link coaxed a handful of Din’s Fire and passed it between his palms as he walked. He liked the feeling in his hands and arms when he performed magic, and a small ball of flame like this wasn’t trying on his energy. His hands moved faster, and he attempted to twirl the ball of flame up onto a single finger. It wavered, and he cancelled the magic in haste. A laugh sounded.

“Keep messing around and you’re going to burn your eyebrows off.”

Link looked up and smiled at Sheik, who sat on the edge of a roof to his right. He jogged to the house and scaled the brick wall to join the Sheikah. They lay side by side against the pitched roof and watched the colors of the sky wane towards twilight.

This was the first time since yesterday that Link had seen Sheik without Impa around, and he debated on how to broach the subject on the tip of his tongue. It was a strange feeling. He had faced Volvagia and a watery doppelganger, but talking about a kiss felt impossible. 

“About yesterday,” Link finally managed. He paused when he sensed Sheik stiffen beside him, listening. “I’m sorry if any of it… I mean, if you didn’t want--”

“It was fine,” Sheik cut in. “Really,” he insisted, seeming to sense Link’s doubt. “It was nice.”

“Yeah,” Link agreed, and he allowed himself to relax. “I needed it,” he admitted. “Just… You know, as a distraction to take my mind off of things for a little while.”

Sheik laughed softly. “It wasn’t that long of a kiss.”

“Oh. Right. Well, I mean… Afterward. It gave me something to think about, I mean.”

“And what did you think about?”

Link sighed. “Well for one, I wondered if I was betraying Zelda.”

“Oh.” Sheik was quiet for a while, as was Link. A few more stars emerged. 

“You know,” Sheik picked up. “I don’t think she would mind.”

Link frowned at the sky. “What makes you say that?”

“Well… Zelda knows you have an immense burden on your shoulders. Given that, I think she would want you to take your moments of happiness whenever you can, especially when the odds are stacked so high against you. She would want you to enjoy what you can of your life, with it being so different. I think… I think as long as you’re honest with her, she would forgive you of any trespasses. You’re not Ganondorf, or Vaati, or even Darcel. You haven’t done much worse than have feelings for someone else. She would understand that. Take it from someone who, according to you, is just like Zelda.”

Link smiled thinly. “So you’re saying I should stop worrying?”

Sheik rolled over onto his side and leaned in. “Exactly,” he replied, his face an inch away. 

Link traced the goldenrod braid to Sheik’s waist where he snagged the Sheikah’s hips and drew him closer. Their lips met for long enough to offer Link plenty of distraction.

_“Link!”_

Cursing and pushing down his tunic, Link sat up and looked down with a flushed face to find Impa staring up at him. Sheik stayed low, now on his back and looking up at the stars as if he was doing only that for the past ten minutes. “Yeah?” Link called back down in a voice of forced ease.

Impa’s eyes narrowed slightly. “Go ask Anju for some firewood to borrow, and then take it to the kitchen.”

“Okay. Yeah, sure,” Link agreed. He promptly jumped down from the roof and hurried off to comply before he could invite the ire he could see in Impa’s eyes.

“Zelda.”

It was barely a whisper, but Zelda was listening for it, and she caught it. She sat up and managed a smile. “Yes, Impa?”

Impa’s eyes finished narrowing. “Don’t play innocent. I saw that--all of it.”

“We were just--”

“Do you want to confuse him?” Impa cut in. “He isn’t seeing you, Zelda. He’s seeing someone else.”

“We already talked about it, and--”

“Oh, so you told him who you are?”

“No, of course not, but--”

“Quiet.”

Zelda sighed, but no longer spoke. She knew that tone of voice. She waited for Impa to gather her thoughts.

“It will stop,” Impa said. “Tonight. Right now. You can be friends, but that’s all. To encourage anything else would be completely unfair to Link--especially once he learns the truth about you. Or do you plan on hiding forever?”

“I understand,” Zelda whispered. “I’m sorry,” she added. “I don’t know how it got out of hand so quickly.”

“There’s a connection between you two,” Impa explained. “It can’t be denied by something as simple as a disguise. But for all of our sakes, you must control it.” Zelda nodded, and Impa beckoned her down from the roof. “Come on. You and Link can help me with the rest of dinner.”

Link was waiting with the firewood in Impa’s house. She told him where to stack it, and with that done she gave him the job of cutting up vegetables. Zelda did her best to keep Impa’s words in mind when she joined Link in the chore. During a moment when Impa was distracted, Zelda leaned in and spoke in Sheik’s voice, “Impa says it wouldn’t be fair to y--Zelda if we continue.”

“Oh,” Link said, and he frowned. “She’s right,” he added a minute later. 

“Yes, but we can still be friends--if you want.”

“Oh. Yeah, of course. Yeah, I’d like that.”

They shared a friendly smile and resumed their work, and when their hips or arms brushed together, they didn’t shy away.

#

In contrast to the dismal Hyrule Field--which was getting darker and less recognizable with each day that passed--Shade found Kakariko Village had retained its liveliness. Returning two weeks after leaving Link with Impa, Shade discovered the villagers were in bubbling moods despite the terror that now squatted in the overtaken castle. Children laughed and chased each other or cuccos; at the washing pool, women sang songs together that quickly broke apart into laughter when someone added a lewdly altered lyric; and the men were happily busy constructing a new addition to accommodate the village’s expanded population. Everywhere was life. Everywhere something or someone moved in defiance of the darkness that was pressing in around their valley home. It left Shade feeling both happy and sad, and in an air of mixed emotions he walked into Impa’s house; knocking twice beforehand to signal his arrival.

Shade’s troubled emotions were swept away when he saw the young man sitting at the table with Impa. In an instant, Shade walked over to the man and bent down on one knee before him with head bowed. “My lady, I am so pleased to find you’re free of that dark man’s grip.”

Zelda--still disguised as Sheik--implored Shade to rise before he was settled on his bent knee. “So what Impa told me of your insight is right,” Zelda remarked once Shade was on his feet. “Not even Link has realized who I am yet.”

“Not that it stopped the two of you,” Impa grumbled, and Zelda looked away.

Shade glanced between the two women, but didn’t press the subject. “I’d heard rumors of the princess’s escape from the castle,” he said instead. “Ganondorf had his minions and monsters scouring the fields for you, Princess Zelda. I had to step in at Lon Lon Ranch when they began to hassle Malon. I saw Ganondorf himself amongst some of the riders, but I managed to avoid the patrols.”

“Ganondorf came here as well with Vaati tagging along,” Impa revealed. “You should have seen Link, Shade. You would have been impressed.” Impa gave the swordsman a quick rundown of Ganondorf’s visit, as well as Link’s progress over the past two weeks. She had nothing but praise for him. 

Shade was less eager to pile on compliments until he saw the boy. “Has he gotten over his fears yet?” he asked when Impa was finished.

“No,” Impa admitted with a frown. “However, we were able to use it as motivation. He’s able and willing to work around his fears now, rather than cowering from them. Shade, Link has worked hard,” Impa added when she saw the disappointment in Shade’s eyes. “He’s barely slept a full night, or eaten a full meal during his time here. He’s been going on pure drive for much of the time. He wants to save Hyrule. He wants to reunite with Zelda.” Her eyes went to the disguised princess for a moment before she finished, “He wants his brother back.”

Zelda shook her head at this last. “Darcel is lost,” she murmured, more to herself.

“Where is Link now?” Shade asked.

“Probably still at the graveyard,” Impa replied. “He’s gone nearly every day since arriving for personal meditation. He hasn’t returned yet this morning.” 

Shade nodded, excused himself, and left Impa’s home. He walked the silent path to the village graveyard, and the wooden gate came into view at the end of the trail. He could see the large headstone that sat just inside the gate. Link was knelt before it with his head bowed in prayer. Shade silenced his steps so as to not disturb Link, but a large owl was startled by his approach, and it took off with a low, hooting cry. 

Link rose and spun at the sound, his movements a blur as he drew his shield and sword. He already had his blade up when he realized it was Shade and not an enemy that had snuck up on him. Link replaced his sword in the new scabbard that hung on his back along with his shield, and he bowed briefly in welcome. “It’s good to see you again, Master Shade,” Link said before rising.

Shade spread his arms to his sides. “What? No great welcome? I was expecting another energetic greeting like the one I received in the Goron City.”

“A graveyard is hardly the place for that,” Link pointed out.

“True,” Shade relented, and he allowed a small smile as he studied Link. “I see you there, lad, and I almost see the ancient hero of legend. You’ve gotten a lot stronger in these past two weeks, and I don’t mean just physically. However, your journey is not done. You did well to react the way you did just now, but I wonder how useful that blade would have been to you if things had come to a fight.” 

Link looked away for a moment instead of answering.

Shade gestured for Link to follow him. “Come on, your time here is done. You’re going to meet the princess of the Zoras next--Ruto. Everything is arranged. You’ll be learning the skills you need from a friend of hers.”

Link walked to Shade’s side, and together they began the return to Impa’s house. Along the way, Link asked, “Why don’t you teach me swordplay?”

“I could,” Shade admitted. “In fact, I could teach you everything you’ve already learned from others. But part of what makes a hero a hero is the journey he takes--the people he meets, the lives he touches, and the wider view he gains by seeing the world from different perspectives. Everyone who has helped you so far is a friend of Saria’s--a group of very special individuals with ties to the ancient hero that are just as strong as your own. It’s important for you to learn from them if you want to become your best. Speaking of which…” 

Shade reached behind his back and pulled out a bundle from under the new round shield that he was carrying. He handed this bundle to Link, who opened it to find a bow and quiver full of arrows. “A gift from Saria. She sends her wishes that you continue to do well.”

“I want to see her again,” Link said. He pulled at the bowstring and listened to its faint twang. “Her and all of the other Kokiri.”

“You will, lad, you will,” Shade promised. “But first comes the Zora kingdom. King Zora and his daughter are eager to receive you. We shouldn’t keep them waiting.” 

Impa and Sheik saw Link off. Sheik shook Link’s hand, said a quiet goodbye, and stepped back. He looked troubled. Link would have liked to have a few more words with Sheik, but Impa pulled him from his thoughts when she swept the Hylian up into a powerful embrace. 

“You’re going to do well, Link. I feel it,” Impa promised once she released him. She dropped her head to press her forehead against Link’s. _“Farawelta forvuwinda,”_ she murmured.

Link frowned. “What?” he asked, and Impa drew back with a laugh.

“It’s an old Sheikah saying. We say it when friends depart for an unknown length of time. It roughly means ‘May the wind favor you’.”

“Thank you,” Link returned with a nod. “I’ll be sure to do my best. And I’ll come back once I’m strong enough to floor _you.”_ Impa laughed again at that and knuckled Link’s head, sending his hat askew. 

Shade cleared his throat slightly. “Let’s go, Link,” he said. “I want to avoid any patrols that might still be around. Impa, you’ve done wonderfully for this once-hopeless brat. I’ll be bringing him back around if I need him whipped into shape again.”

“Do that, and I might just whip you instead!” Impa teased. 

Link laughed, only to cut off his amusement when Shade arched an eyebrow at him. At the swordsmen’s urging, Link parted from his friends with a final goodbye, and followed his mentor out of Kakariko Village.


	16. Disturbed Waters

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Vaati grants two gifts to Dark Link while Link makes his way to the Zora kingdom for more training.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for your continued support!
> 
> I must admit I'm fonder of Lord Jabu-Jabu than I am of the Great Deku Tree, so it's always fun to feature him in a _Zelda_ fanfiction. I hope you enjoy!

# In the Shade of a Hero

### Disturbed Waters

The view was certainly something. Standing on the low slope of the shore, Dark Link could take in much of Lake Hylia in a single pass of his eyes across the horizon. Sheer cliffs encircled the pool of clear, pure water, and a small island with a single dead tree marked the rough middle. Two bridges, joined at a smaller island, spanned the lake to the spot of land. A laboratory and a sport fishing building were the only structures marking the shore. Dark Link didn’t have to worry about the owners bothering him. Their blood had stained his sword not too long ago.

The pureness of the lake vista relaxed Dark Link. It was a feeling he hadn’t felt in years. The low district of Castle Town had never come close to beauty like this; not even Hyrule Field could compare. He drew in a deep breath and released it in a long, soft sigh. It was like being young again.

Vaati was standing close by, playing with a small leaf. He coaxed it into tumbles over his fingers with a continuous gentle wind as he asked Dark Link, “I take it you like your new slice of Hyrule?” Dark Link nodded once. “Good. It’s yours. We just need to let the Zora know, of course, but that’s easily solved. I’ve found a few public executions usually bring people to their senses--if you can call those walking fish ‘people’.” 

The leaf burnt up and fell to the grass in glowing, blackened curls, and Vaati walked over to take up a position closer by Dark Link’s side. “Now I have another gift for you.”

A small portion of the lake close by the shore began to roil. Dark Link dropped his gaze from the tops of the cliffs to watch the ripples and bubbles grow. From a ring of froth the water rose up as a transparent tentacle. The tentacle stretched towards the two men on shore, and Dark Link reached a hand out to stroke the wet surface of the creature. 

“I call it Morpha,” Vaati explained while his companion examined the tentacle. “It’s a powerful nucleus able to collect and control water to form a body. You can direct its movements yourself, if you’d like. Let me show--”

“I’ve got it,” Dark Link cut in. He threw an arm out to the side, and Morpha whipped around him in an arc like a transparent ribbon. The monster sunk back into the water with barely a splash, trailing a light rain that wet the grass around its new master. 

As Vaati watched Morpha leap in and out of the lake in higher and higher arcs under Dark Link’s silent direction, he felt a strange sensation. It was almost as if he was… dismissed. Vaati didn’t like this new feeling, and his red eyes darkened to a bloody maroon for a brief moment. “Well then,” he spoke in clipped tones. “Clearly you know what you’re doing. Should I just leave the Zora to you?”

“I can handle it,” Dark Link replied without looking at Vaati. 

“Your brother is heading there now. Can you handle _him?”_

Dark Link turned to look upon Vaati. His expression was closed; unreadable. Even his dark heart, once so loud and clear to the Wind Mage, was shrouded. In truth, the Hylian was beginning to unsettle Vaati much like Link unsettled him--yet for a different, darker reason. 

“I’ll take care of him,” Dark Link said. He spread both arms, and tentacles reached out from the water to encircle him. They formed a rough chair--a throne, almost. Dark Link relaxed into the seat with a strange smile on his face. He sank down below the water, supported by Morpha’s many tentacles. 

#

The water looked innocent enough; churning and bubbling along the curving route it took through Hyrule from its origin in the Zora kingdom, which lay just beyond the tunnel Link and Shade stood before on the opposite side of the river. Link was a step or so behind his mentor. Navi, sensing his reluctance, circled his head on anxious wings, and Epona mouthed Link’s hair with her velvety lips when she recognized her master was afraid. Link reached up with an absent-minded hand to stroke the mare’s head, but he had eyes for only the water in front of him.

Shade drew Link’s attention with a slight clearing of his throat. “Well, let’s cross. I want to do so while there’s still enough daylight to dry our clothes.” He looked over his shoulder at Link, who nodded once. “Let’s go. The horses will keep.”

It was odd to hear Shade repeat those words again. Link whispered a goodbye and a promise to return to Epona. Shade was already stepping into the water; it was waist-high for him. Link, who was shorter in his youth, would be nearly up to his chest in the water--if he crossed that way.

Shade reached the far bank and clambered up onto the low slope. He wrung out the water from his shirt hem and shook more out of his boots. They still squelched with the sound of contained water when he shifted his weight in them. Looking across the narrow river, he sighed when he saw Link was still standing on the grass. “I’m not going through this again, boy,” Shade called in a tone of warning. 

Link took one step back, and two more, and Navi sunk into his collar. Shade sucked in a deep breath, readying himself for a furious lecture, but the words died on his lips when Link dashed forward towards the river. 

The young man had gained a lot of speed during his two weeks of training with Impa--more improvement due in large part to the Triforce he held--and he had also learned some sound agility and maneuvers. Shade watched Link reach the edge of the river and leap across it in a low arc like a cat. He hit the opposite bank, tucking and rolling. When he straightened up, smiling, blades of dead grass clung to his hair. Navi zoomed up out of his collar in a series of speedy circles as if in congratulations for this small acrobatic feat. 

Shade frowned and asked, “What was that?” 

“That was me working my way around my fears,” Link replied, sounding almost rehearsed. 

Shade heard Impa’s teachings in Link’s words, and he scoffed before asking, “And you think you’re going to be leaping and bounding like a bunny through the Zora kingdom? Or maybe instead you’re going to do your pretty teleportation trick all the time and drain your life away?” Much of Link’s smile faltered. “Working around fears is fine in the short run,” Shade continued. “But don’t keep pushing them aside and attempt to forget about them. He who ignores his own weaknesses will find his enemies see them all the more clearer.” Shade dropped his stern air and reached out to brush the grass from Link’s bangs. “Come on, lad, let’s keep moving.”

The Zora River twisted and split its way through a broken hill of patchwork land and rock. For most of its length, the water was reduced to a few inches in depth. Link had no problem crossing these shallow passages, and the deeper water could be easily leapt given the narrowness of the river. 

As the two men made their way to the entrance to the Zora kingdom, they talked easily with no hint of the anger and resentment that was between them upon Link’s arrival to Kakariko Village. Shade told Link of the Kokiri--how Mido was still attempting to woo Saria’s affection, and how the triplets had discovered the Kokiri Sword; a famed weapon of the tribe once thought lost. It was now being passed around the Kokiri like a community pet with a new owner daily. 

Link laughed when he imagined the child-like race armed and dangerous. “Ganondorf had best watch out, or the Kokiri will be the ones to take him down before I’ve had my shot.”

Shade grunted a laugh. “Maybe, although it’s hard to distinguish you from them as it is.” He grinned to show Link he was only teasing. When he spoke again, it was to point out a skullwalltula clinging to a cliff above them. 

“Try and hit that,” Shade instructed. When Link raised an eyebrow in confusion, Shade gestured to the quiver hidden beneath his shield. “Your bow, boy! Let’s see if you’ve any natural talent.”

Link had played with bows before as a younger teenager growing up in the castle, so he was familiar with the weapon. He pulled out the bow Saria had gifted him and strung an arrow, explaining to Shade as he did how much experience he had with it. “I could never get a bull’s-eye,” Link admitted with a sheepish smile. “But I’ve been told I have good grouping. Then again, I never really took it seriously. Darcel was always the one interested in this sort of stuff.” Link’s face darkened momentarily with grief when his brother’s name slipped from his lips.

Shade patted Link’s shoulder to shake him out of his slump. “Take it seriously now,” he said, and he pointed again at the skullwalltula. He stepped back to allow Link room to draw back the bowstring. The Hylian aimed up at a sharp angle, frowned, and went to take a step back. 

“No,” Shade said, and Link relaxed his bow with a puzzled expression thrown over his shoulder. “There will be a time when you can’t take any steps back. You must learn to adapt and do the best you can with what you’re given. Take the shot from there.”

Link nodded, turned his head up, and aimed his bow again. His stiffer right arm held the bow steady while his stronger left pulled the bowstring. He squinted through one eye. 

Shade snapped out, “Both eyes open, boy! Don’t sacrifice peripheral vision for a cleaner shot! You can always take a second shot if circumstances allow, but there are no second chances if something decides to sneak up on you and end your life.” 

Link grumbled, but opened his right eye and re-centered his aim. The skullwalltula wasn’t moving save for the faint shifts of its large mandibles. Link made a final adjustment and let his arrow fly. It hit the stone a mere two inches from the skullwalltula, which first tensed before fleeing across the stone wall to an alcove, where it slipped in and disappeared. Link grumbled again, this time in disappointment, and relaxed his stance. 

“That wasn’t too bad,” Shade remarked. His praise surprised Link, who spun around with an eager smile. “If your target had been larger, you would have hit it. Even a nick might be all you need to distract an enemy long enough to save your life.” 

Link smiled a little wider, and Shade cast around for a new target. He spied an ancient Sheikah stone sitting on a cliff to the left of where the skullwalltula had sat. “Try that,” Shade instructed, and he pointed up at the new target. “I was too unfair with you, setting a small skullwalltula as the first target. If you miss that stone I’ll have a reason to wallop you across the head.” 

Link turned to his left to take aim again, and Shade told him, “Center your aim a little quicker. You won’t have time to dawdle in battle.”

Shade watched Link center his aim with more ease than he had the first time. The ease died when an alarmed expression passed over Link’s face like a flash of light. His left hand twitched with a spasm and the arrow, loosened from the bowstring, went flying awry. It barely nicked the Sheikah stone, but the contact of the arrowhead against the target sent a strange, ringing echo across the area. 

Link dropped his bow and raised a palm to his right eye. He could hear Shade calling his name in alarm; could feel the man’s heavy hands on his shoulders. Link shrugged out of his grip and stumbled away. He lowered his hand, and his vision doubled at the sight of the blood staining it. 

“Link!” Shade appeared in front of Link. His hands took hold of the Hylian’s head in a gentle but firm grip and directed him to crane his head up. Link could feel a warm trail of liquid running down his right cheek. He didn’t think it was tears. His vision was flatter now, and everything was still doubled. Two images of Shade’s concerned face swam before Link’s eyes in a circular motion. 

“Over here, lad,” Shade said, and he dropped his hands to tug on Link’s arm. He led Link to the bank of the river and helped him to his knees to rinse the blood from his face and eye. “Better?” Shade asked after blotting the pink water from Link’s face. 

Link blinked water from his eyelashes and looked around the area. He no longer had double-vision, but something seemed off. 

“Look at me,” Shade instructed, and Link turned his head. His mentor raised a hand and covered Link’s right eye so that his vision was halved. “How does it look?”

“Everything looks a little flat,” Link admitted.

“That’s the lack of depth perception,” Shade said with a wan smile. He moved his arm to cover Link’s left eye. “How ‘bout this one?”

Link’s breath caught in his throat. He hadn’t noticed it with both of his eyes working together to focus his vision, but with the left one cloaked it was easy to see something was wrong with his right eye. “Darker,” Link said. “Everything looks a little darker--like the sun is clouded or something.”

Shade clicked his tongue and helped Link to his feet. “It’s begun,” he murmured. “Your sacrifice,” he elaborated when Link appeared confused. “You agreed to give up an eye to wield the Master Sword before you were ready. You remember, right?”

Link nodded. “Yes, but… I assumed the eye would be taken all at one shot, and only after my quest was done.”

“You’re remembering it wrong,” Shade said. “The wolf said, ‘Before your task is done you will lose your eye to me’.”

Link frowned because he didn’t remember telling Shade the exact words of the wolf he had met in the Sacred Grove. But he shrugged off the oddity. His eye was the more pressing concern right now. “If I start to lose vision in my right eye more and more, things are only going to get harder.”

“It’s already hard,” Shade reminded him. “You have to adapt--I keep telling you this, so start to remember it. The Zora will help you. Their entire livelihood is based on their ability to adapt to life on land and water. So let’s get moving to their kingdom, all right?” Shade clapped a reassuring hand on Link’s shoulder. With the swordsman’s gentle encouragement, Link pushed his troubles aside and focused on the tasks ahead. 

After some more climbing up broken slopes and passing--wetly--behind a waterfall, Link and Shade came to a brightly lit cavern. Passages broke off from this main cavern, which featured its own waterfall and a deep pool of water on a lower level. The network of tunnels and caves was clearly just as deep and elaborate as the Goron City. 

But instead of a rough-looking people hewn from rock, elegant amphibious creatures walked upright through the tunnels, or swam swiftly in the water. Their skins ranged from pure white to deep blue, and were often marked with loops, lines, and swirls of similar colors. Long fins extended from the backs of their skulls, and their digits were webbed. More fins swooped out from ankles, wrists, and waists. The sizes and styling, along with the skin patterns, varied between individuals so that no two Zora looked alike. 

Growing up, Link saw the occasional Zora in Hyrule Castle Town, but he had never interacted with them beyond a curious glance. Now one hurried up a sloping path to where Shade and Link stood. The Zora quickly began to lead the two visitors towards a set of steep stone stairs. “His Excellency, King Zora, awaits you, along with the lady Princess Ruto,” he explained. 

Under the Zora’s guidance, Link and Shade were led up a long set of stairs and bowed into a throne room overlooking the pool that fed into the kingdom’s waterfall. King Zora--a large, well-rounded representative of his species--sat astride a throne at the mouth of a wide tunnel. His daughter Ruto was of a more natural Zora shape, although she lacked the extended fin from the back of her head. She was the most elegant Zora Link had seen yet, and he found himself blushing when faced with her beauty. Ruto saw the expression and smiled kindly at him. 

Link was directed to drop to one knee beside his mentor on a stone platform used to receive guests. As he did once before with Darunia, Shade spoke to the Zora princess in a strange form of Hylian. Ruto translated for her father; she echoed Shade’s words in the Zora language, and King Zora nodded along each time. Again, Link heard his name in the midst of the conversation. He also saw Shade gesture to the pool of water in which the stone platform sat. Link blushed again, this time in shame. He knew what Shade was talking about. 

King Zora nodded one final time once Ruto had translated the last of Shade’s words, and he replied in modern Hylian, “Of course we will hold to our earlier agreement to aid this young man in his quest. My dear daughter Princess Ruto has already made arrangements with another of our guests. He will be providing Link with much of his training. And to aid Link in his task of conquering his fear of deep water, I will grant him the very tunic and armor the ancient hero once wore when he saved our kingdom in the past.”

Link was confused. How was a tunic and armor supposed to help him conquer his fear? But King Zora and Shade were saying their parting words, so Link had no opportunity to question the Zora leader. Once the meeting had come to a close, Link rose to his feet alongside Shade. 

With all formality now cast aside, Ruto hurried down the sloping path to the receiving platform where she swept Link up into a brief but powerful hug. “It’s so wonderful to finally meet you!” she exclaimed. She released Link and took a step back with a child-like giggle when he gasped to refill his lungs. “Shade told me you were a handsome young man,” Ruto continued. “And it looks like he was right.”

Blushing furiously, Link cast an accusing glare at his mentor, who only smirked. 

“Princess Ruto, try to keep him in line for me,” Shade said. He clapped a hand onto Link’s shoulder. “I’ll see you in another two weeks, lad.” Shade’s face darkened momentarily. “Or maybe sooner. We’re running out of time, after all.” He forced a smile back onto his face, and said his goodbyes to both Link and Ruto before descending alone down the stairs leading from the throne room.

Ruto took hold of Link’s hand in one of hers. Her skin was smooth and slightly cold, but not at all slimy like Link had feared. “Come with me, Link,” Ruto urged, and she tugged Link up the path she had taken from her father’s throne. “You need to greet our protective deity, Lord Jabu-Jabu. If you’ll be staying here for any real length of time like planned, you’re going to need to show your respect. It’s tradition.”

Ruto led Link into the tunnel behind her father; it led to a wide fountain. High stone cliffs encircled a deep pool of water that lapped at a stone platform. With his large head resting upon the platform, the whale-like Lord Jabu-Jabu floated easily on the water’s surface. His tail disturbed the water with gentle swishes, and his bright blue eyes blinked at Ruto and Link when they stepped close to the platform. Lord Jabu-Jabu was adorned with decorative jewels, metals, and fish bones--offerings from his devoted people. 

Link was to make a similar offering, Ruto informed him. “You must catch a fish and offer it to Lord Jabu-Jabu. Offer it respectfully!” With this said, Ruto began to back away from Link, and he turned to watch her go with a questioning look. “This is a task you must do alone,” she explained with a smile to encourage him. “It’s really easy. There are fish in the shallows, so you don’t have to go into the deep water. I’ll be back in a few minutes--I just want to find Mikau.”

“Who?” Link asked, but Ruto was already gone, having disappeared down the tunnel. 

Link was left standing in ankle-deep water, having no idea how to catch a fish or even what to do with it once he had one. Frowning, he cast around at the water surrounding him and noticed that there were indeed small fish flitting through the shallows. They were roughly half a foot long, and the light glancing off of their scales gave them a bluish color. Link had no net, and he doubted he had enough speed to catch one of the slippery fish with his bare hands alone. Flummoxed, he idly scratched at his hair where the hem of his green Kokiri hat sat against his head. Upon touching the hat, he was inspired, and he swept it off of his head. Its conical shape looked similar to a fish net. Link crouched down, balanced on the balls of his feet, and slowly slipped his hat into the water. He held it open with his fingers and grew still. 

Link had learned patience from both Darunia and Impa, so it was no trouble for him to stay motionless for the several minutes it took for the fish to grow accustomed to his presence. When one of them swam close to his open hat, Link snapped the hat forward through the water and scooped up the fish. He straightened up with a victorious _“Ah-hah!”_ and watched as the water sifted out of his hat in a small downpour, leaving only the fish flopping inside. Link returned to the platform with his twitching hat dangling from his hands. He bowed low before Lord Jabu-Jabu’s great head, and reached into his hat to take hold of the fish. 

Sensing what Link was doing, Lord Jabu-Jabu opened his great maw to reveal a mouthful of teeth and a large tongue. Link tossed the fish onto this latter, and Lord Jabu-Jabu closed his mouth in acceptance of the offering. 

Looking up into Lord Jabu-Jabu’s eyes, Link felt a sudden urge to step forward towards him. He followed this urge and pressed the palm of his left hand against the deity’s skin. It was slippery to the touch, but it radiated more heat than a Zora’s skin did. Link felt his head swim when a lightheaded sensation fell over him. His eyes closed, and he dropped his forehead against Lord Jabu-Jabu. His eyelids twitched as if he was dreaming, and a voice filled his head and body with a strange power.

_You have a difficult task ahead of you, descendant of the ancient hero._

“Yes,” Link murmured in his trance-like state.

_It will be more difficult than you can imagine. Very soon, you will feel as if you cannot go on. Very soon, you will experience a pain so great, it will seem better to end everything than go on experiencing it. You cannot give in to this desire. You must remain strong. You must face the hardships with all of your courage. You are Hyrule’s only hope._

Link felt a tear course down his cheek. Lord Jabu-Jabu’s words were filled with a strange sadness and, flowing through Link as they did, they filled him with that same sadness. “What if I’m not strong enough?” Link asked. “What if I want to give in?”

_If you feel as if you can no longer continue your journey, seek the river in the valley. Beyond it you will find one who will help you._

“The river in the valley,” Link repeated in a low voice. 

Lord Jabu-Jabu’s power slipped away, and Link raised his head, dropping his hand from the deity’s skin. He took a few steps back and bowed again to Lord Jabu-Jabu before turning and leaving the fountain that the deity called home.

Halfway through the tunnel, Link came across a panicked Ruto. Upon seeing Link, the Zora princess stopped and seized him by the arm. “Link! A stranger has come to our kingdom! He’s threatening my people!”

“Who is it?” Link asked in a voice terse with concern and anger.

Ruto swallowed with difficulty and said, “He calls himself Dark Link.”


	17. Opposite Shores

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dark Link declares his ownership of Lake Hylia, and drives the point home with an ultimatum that Link must meet despite his fears.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for your continued support!
> 
> I greatly admire the Zora tunic in _Twilight Princess,_ so I incorporated it into this fanfiction. It was fun to create an explanation for the blue mask that appears over Link's face when he dives in that tunic!
> 
> I also had a lot of fun giving Mikau some character. I hope you like him.
> 
> Feedback and kudos are most welcomed. Thank you, and enjoy!

# In the Shade of a Hero

### Opposite Shores

_You must know your brother despises you… He is determined to kill you, Link. He has fashioned himself into a sinister reflection of you …He now calls himself Dark Link._

Ganondorf’s words, spoken in Kakariko Village, rang through Link’s head as he hurried with Ruto at his side through the tunnel leading from Lord Jabu-Jabu’s fountain, and down a flight of stairs to the main cavern of the Zora kingdom. The closer the pair grew to the cavern, the more frightened Zora they encountered running away from the area. In the opposite direction swift, spear-wielding Zora in light armor were hurrying towards the cavern--no doubt to meet the one responsible for the chaos and fear rampant amongst the amphibious people. 

Link hurried to join the warriors, and he arrived with them at the high tunnel entrance of the cavern. Beyond the tunnel lay the waterfall and the start of the Zora River proper. And standing before the tunnel, with a young Zora in his hand by the throat, was Dark Link.

_No,_ Link thought. _He’s my brother Darcel._ Once the clamor of the Zora’ armor had died away, Link stepped forward from the crowd of ready warriors and called, “Darcel--”

“It’s Dark Link,” the black-clad Hylian snarled before Link could get any further. The Zora in his hand squirmed with a whimper of fear. She was suspended over the edge of the walkway. If she were to fall, she would land safely in the deep pool of water below--but Link doubted Darcel’s plans were to simply drop the child. 

The Zora warriors tensed as one, and spears clacked when grips were tightened. Dark Link cast an amused glance over them and smiled unkindly. His hand tightened around the young Zora’s neck, and her whimpers cut off. “Try me, and you’ll see how fast I can pop this fish’s head off.”

“Leave the Zora alone, Darcel,” Link said. He refused to address his brother by anything else, and he could see this irritated Dark Link. The young man’s ruby eyes flashed, and his smile tightened into a scowl. “Your quarrel is with me, not these people.”

Dark Link’s scowl broke, and he cackled, of all things. _“Quarrel!”_ he repeated. “Listen to you! With your pretty words, you sound almost _princely.”_

Dark Link’s voice hissed around the word, and Link knew he was referring to Zelda’s relationship with him. The Master Sword rested against his back, but Link kept his hands at his sides, and his eyes on his brother.

Dark Link scoffed at the lack of any reaction from Link. “Well, I’m sorry to burst your bubble, but I do in fact have something to discuss with these fish-brains.” Dark Link turned his gaze out over the cavern as a whole. Dotting the water, tunnel mouths, and cliffs, Zora of various colors and shapes looked on in unease at their unwelcomed visitor. 

“Zora!” Dark Link began, calling loudly across the cavern so that his voice echoed to great effect. “I am here to tell you that Lake Hylia is no longer under your protection or ownership. I am now its ruler. I control its waters, its shores, and its cliffs. I reside over the temple that sleeps on the lakebed. Anyone--Zora or otherwise--” Dark Link’s eyes flashed towards Link. “who attempts to usurp me will find a sword in their gut.”

Ruto pushed her way through the warriors and ran past Link, who tried and failed to seize her when he saw her go by. The Zora princess strode up to Dark Link where others had given him several feet of room, and she pointed a webbed finger into his pale face. “You think you’re so brave, strutting in here, hurting my people, and claiming ownership of a lake that has been under the Zora kingdom’s care since the beginning of ages? This is what I think of you.” With a swift hand, Ruto slapped Dark Link across the face. 

Dark Link reeled back, stunned, and in his moment of distraction the Zora princess snatched the child out of his slackened hand. She tossed the young Zora back through the air, and Link caught her. Ruto paid for the time it took to secure the child’s safety when she was knocked down by a hard blow to the head. She hit the ground with a cry of pain, and Dark Link unsheathed the sword on his back to point its tip down towards her.

_“No!”_ Link cried, and he along with half a dozen Zora warriors ran forward to stop Dark Link. 

Another reached him first. Link saw a blur of blue and white, and Dark Link staggered back, holding his bleeding left forearm in his right hand. His sword lay on the ground, but not forgotten. The cry had barely died on his lips before he ducked down and collected the blade. 

Ruto was still on the ground, and she jerked her head forward to bury a mouthful of needle-sharp teeth into Dark Link’s shin. He howled in pain, and Ruto rolled to her feet and backed away. Dark Link roared in anger and rushed forward to attack her. 

A tall Zora stepped in front of him and brandished a wide fin like a shield. Dark Link’s sword recoiled off of the stiff spines of the fin, and he stared in shock and anger at the Zora who had dared to oppose him.

“Go,” the Zora ordered. He was no warrior, but he had just as much courage. “We don’t want you here.”

Dark Link curled his lip. “How dare you--” he began, taking a step forward, but he stopped when he saw Link take up a stance by the Zora with the Master Sword held out. Dark Link recoiled from the shine of the blade as if it was a hot iron, and he fixed a furious glare on the Hylian. 

“Just go, Darcel,” Link said, echoing the Zora at his side. “Please. I don’t want to hurt you, but I will if I have to.”

“As if you could,” Dark Link snarled. He took another step back into a swirl of darkness that appeared behind him. As it encased him, he smiled. 

It was a hungry expression, and Link felt a shiver of unease creep up his back. The Master Sword at once felt too heavy--too eager, almost--and he sheathed it with a sigh of relief. The last of Dark Link disappeared into the portal, and it winked out. The cavern took a collective sigh of relief.

With the danger gone and no one hurt, Link turned to his Zora companion and offered a hand. “Thanks for your help,” he said with a smile. “I’m Link.”

The Zora took Link’s hand and shook it. “I’m Mikau,” he returned.

“Oh, so _you’re_ Mikau,” Link said. Mikau was thin with an elaborate blue pattern over his arms, back, and head. He was clearly from a more exotic locale than the native Hyrulean Zora. Small accessories such as a bracelet and belt adorned him, and when he extended his arm to shake Link’s hand, Link saw folded fins tucked against the Zora’s arms. 

“So that shield thing really was a fin?” Link asked.

Mikau smiled and flexed his right arm. His fin spread out and stiffened into a mid-sized shield. “A trick of my people,” Mikau explained to a surprised Link. “We can also do this.” He extended his other arm. A flex of this limb rotated a stiff, folded fin out like a makeshift sword. 

Link had to laugh. He knew now why Shade had sent him to the Zora to learn swordplay. 

Mikau smiled at the reaction and explained, “Where I come from, survival isn’t always a guarantee, so it’s good to have some tricks on hand.”

Link cast his eyes back at the rest of the Zora. Most of the warriors had tipped their helmets back and were gathered around the younger Zora, who was being comforted by a bruised but whole Ruto. “It’s getting to be that way around here,” Link remarked in a low voice.

“Link?” Mikau called, and the Hylian turned to look at him once more. “Who was that young man that came to the caves just now? Why was he calling himself by your name? He seemed to know you.”

Link bowed his head. A faint frown line wrinkled his brow. “He _was_ my brother. But now… Now I’m not sure who he is anymore.”

Mikau reached out and placed a webbed hand on Link’s shoulder. “That must trouble you deeply,” he remarked, and Link nodded. “Did you mean what you said before, Link? About hurting your brother if necessary?”

“I’d rather not,” Link admitted in a whisper. “But if it’s to save Hyrule…” 

Mikau nodded. “Then I’ll teach you what I know about combat. You’re going to need it. Despite your brother’s dark intentions, he spoke the truth about you: You don’t know how to wield that blade. You have to become comfortable with it--so much that it’s more an extension of your body than an object in your hand.” Mikau again extended his fin in resemblance of a sword. 

Link nodded in understanding and agreement, and Mikau’s formal demeanor dropped like a stone. _“All right!”_ the Zora exclaimed, and he slung an arm over Link’s neck to drag him closer, as if he and Link were already the tightest of friends. “We’re going to make one awesome team, bruddah!”

“Okay!” Link agreed in haste. 

Mikau whooped. He was drawing lots of attention--particularly from the female half of the onlookers. They giggled and cheered him on as he dragged Link around the cavern and proclaimed their new friendship over and over. 

Link endured it all with a smile. Mikau’s enthusiasm was infectious; he cheered the entire kingdom. Once his parading of Link was over, he retrieved a guitar from his guest quarters and lit up the cavern with the sounds of screaming strings and passionate vocals. 

_“I got a girl named Lulu, she’ll make you go cuckoo…!”_

“Lulu?” Link repeated to Ruto, who sat beside him as they and most of the kingdom listened to Mikau’s music. “Who is Lulu?”

“Mikau’s girl back in Termina, where he lives with the saltwater Zora,” Ruto explained. “She’s expecting,” she added in a whisper. “Seven eggs. She’ll lay them any day now.”

“Why isn’t Mikau there with her?” Link asked.

“He came here on my request to help you,” Ruto replied. When Link opened his mouth with a ready objection, Ruto was there to override him. “Link, not a word. This was entirely voluntary on Mikau’s part. I, in fact, encouraged him to stay home. But he wanted to help you. He said it isn’t the laying of the eggs that’s most important, but seeing them hatch. And that won’t be for several weeks.”

Link looked again at Mikau, who was jamming on his guitar while a collection of young Zora danced around him, twirling and laughing as they spun with each other to the music. “I’m not sure if I could do it,” Link said. “Leave my friends, my family, all of my loved ones… Mikau’s really brave.”

“So are you, Link,” Ruto said. She poked him playfully in the ribs. “You’ve just got to find the courage within you.”

“I don’t have the courage to fight Darcel,” Link said with a shake of his head. “I don’t want to hurt him, Ruto. I look at him, and I still see my identical twin brother, bright-eyed and carefree. Something happened to him in the Lost Woods all those years ago--something I wasn’t strong enough to prevent. Maybe he became infected with some dark power, and Ganondorf’s fostering only strengthened that evil.”

Ruto sighed and said, “If that’s the case, there may be no going back for him at this point. The most merciful thing might be to end his life.” Link jerked a startled gaze around towards her, but Ruto was unfazed by his shock. “Did you see him react to your blade, Link?” she asked instead. “He feared it. The Master Sword is evil’s bane. If your brother finds the blade repulsive, then that means--”

“Darcel is still in there,” Link insisted. His voice was terse with emotion, and when he stood up his hands tightened into shaking fists at his sides. “I know my brother is still in that corrupted shell. I’m going to stop him. I’m going to help him.”

“Things that are broken never return to what they originally were,” Ruto pointed out.

“I don’t believe that,” Link said. He raised a hand to his chest where a long scar hid under his tunic. “I was broken once. Now I’m better than before. Darcel can be, too.” 

Ruto only shook her head, but Link refused to allow her opinions to taint his hopes. Darcel could be helped. Link just had to figure out how that was possible.

#

From the mouth of a tunnel that linked Lake Hylia to the Zora kingdom, six Zora warriors emerged and broke the surface of the lake to take their first look at the altered landscape. Already, two days after Dark Link’s false claim of ownership, the lake was vastly changed for the worst. The Zora kingdom had heard the rumors of a strange, watery monster that was wreaking havoc on Lake Hylia under Dark Link’s command. The Zora now discovered there was some truth to the rumor. The lake’s shores were brown with dead grass, and the water level had dropped significantly. Dull clouds covered the sun, giving the entire lake a gray pallor, and a weak rain fell. 

The Zora warriors swam to shore where they emerged from the water and stood together in a tight, wary group, eyeing their surroundings. “The lake is very unhealthy,” one remarked to the silent agreement of his fellows. 

“This is all the fault of that dark man!” another Zora--the captain of the group--snapped. His grip tightened on the shaft of his spear, and from within his helmet a low growl emerged. “I’ll show him not to meddle with Zora affairs or lands.”

“Sir, with respect, we’re only supposed to be scouting,” one of the captain’s fellows spoke up. “King Zora does not want us to engage the enemy at the present time.”

The captain scoffed. “No doubt going by that land-walker’s advice.”

“Sir, Link is--”

“He knows _nothing_ of Zora affairs!” the captain snapped, turning upon his charges. He was taller than them, and when he leaned in he appeared to loom over them all. “For generations we have maintained these waters, this land, and these shores with no help from land-walkers! I’ll be _damned_ if I’m going to put aside my honor as a Zora, and my duty to continue that protection, all because a Hylian child tells me not to!”

The captain would have continued along the same angry vein at great length, but something stopped him. In his ire he hadn’t failed to notice the way his soldiers were shrinking back. He naturally thought they were cowering from his anger, but in fact the Zora’s heads were tilted up at the translucent tentacle of water that was rising up above the crest of their captain’s helmet. 

With the speed of a whip, the tentacle snapped through the air and wrapped itself around the captain’s neck. His words were cut off with a strangled scream when he was tugged backwards and up into the air. More tentacles emerged from the lake. They snatched up all but one of the Zora in similar fashion. The lone Zora on the ground looked up at his fellow struggling warriors through the eyeholes in his helmet. They framed the Zora’s panic in perfect circles.

Although the tentacles were made of water, their surfaces were as firm as rock, and the trapped Zora had no hopes of escape. The remaining member of the scouting party tried his best to free them by attacking the tentacles with his spear. He was forced to stop when the surface of the water between the tentacles began to bubble. Tense and wary, the Zora warrior watched the so-called Dark Link rise up from beneath the lake on a transparent throne. Water fell off of him as if he were glass, leaving no trace of wetness behind on his skin, clothes, or hair. 

Once his throne had come to a stop, Dark Link leaned forward over his knees with his hands folded under his chin. He contemplated the singled-out Zora with a bored look. “Where is Link?” he barked.

The Zora warrior didn’t answer Dark Link’s question. Instead, he straightened his trembling spine and said in a tone of challenge, “Dark Link, as a representative of the Zora tribe I hereby warn you of future offensive action should you continue to claim rule over our lands.”

Dark Link laughed, and the Zora’s courage withered; he sunk back into himself. “What bravado!” the Hylian remarked with genuine amusement. Once his chuckles had died, he fixed a smirk on the lone Zora. “This is what I think of you.”

To the Zora warrior’s horror, his fellows’ struggles increased when the tentacles around their necks tightened. When he heard the slow snapping of bone, he crouched down and ducked his head between his hands. His helmet couldn’t block out the screams, but worse were the dull flops of bodies hitting the wet shore of the lake. A helmet rolled to a stop before the crouched Zora, and he scrambled away from it on hands and feet with a scream of terror. 

A tentacle seized the remaining Zora around the waist, and he was lifted up to hang in front of Dark Link. A second tentacle pulled off the Zora’s helmet, crushed it with a powerful squeeze, and tossed it aside into the lake where it sank in a ring of bubbles. Dark Link was no longer laughing, smirking, or smiling. He leaned further out towards his trembling prisoner and stared into the Zora’s eyes with a dangerous expression. 

“I’m going to let you live, little Zora,” Dark Link said, “because I want a message delivered to the Hylian who still dares to call me his brother. I will accept no substitutes, no ambassadors, and no scouts. I want _Link_ and no one else. I will be generous and give him a few days to arrive, ready to fight. If he does not come to the lakebed temple within three sundowns from now, I will come looking for him--and I will eliminate anyone or anything that dares to protect him.”

The surviving Zora was swung out over the lake and dropped into the water above the passage leading to the Zora kingdom. With a final, frightened glance, the Zora dove and swam speedily into the passage, disappearing from sight while Dark Link sank below the lake’s surface. 

#

“No, bruddah, you’ve got to _feel_ it! Swordplay is like playing music--you have to find a rhythm and beat that works for you.” Mikau stepped forward and corrected Link’s grip and stance as he talked. “The other guy? He’s always going to have a different beat than yours. You have to be more confident with your own beats and rhythm in order to win any duel.”

“Doesn’t strength play a part?” Link asked as Mikau stepped back to examine him. 

“Of course,” Mikau agreed. “And speed. And thinking on your feet. But with a sword likes yours, you need to understand how it moves and what it feels. The Master Sword is infamously finicky. If it senses enough doubt in you, you’ll find it will be harder to wield it. Now come at me again, bruddah! Try that helm-splitter move I taught you!” Mikau tensed his fins into a makeshift sword and shield, and grinned at Link over the top edge of the latter. 

Link readied his own shield and sword, and he and Mikau began to move together in a deadly dance of steel, muscle, and strength. A little less than two days had passed since his training with Mikau began, but already Link was feeling much more confident with the Master Sword than he could ever remember feeling. Like Mikau had taught him, the sword was no longer just an object in Link’s hand. It was an extension of his arm. He moved it at his whim, and with increasing ease. It no longer felt heavy or cumbersome even during the most precise of moves.

Moves like the helm-splitter that Link was beginning to master. Leaping over his enemies’ heads, Link could strike powerfully at the back of their skulls with his blade. If that didn’t finish them, it would surely provide a long enough distraction to allow him to strike at their unguarded backs. In practice, Link was reducing the power of his blow and striking Mikau with only the flat of his blade so that the Zora could avoid injury. 

After three successful hits with the helm-splitter, Mikau announced he was confident Link could pull off the move in combat. “Now for my next lesson--” Mikau began.

_“Miiiiiikau!”_

The serious expression on Mikau’s face dropped, and his lips split into a smile when the three female Zora walking close by called out to him. “Ladies!” Mikau, ever the charmer, called back cheerily. 

Link saw Ruto amongst the small group, and he waved at her with his own smile. Seeing the gesture, Ruto led her two friends over to Link where they surrounded him on three sides; clutching at him as if he was a child in need of a hug. 

“Poor Link,” Ruto cooed while Mikau looked at the Hylian, wearing a betrayed look. Ruto stroked Link’s reddening cheek, and her friends pressed closer against him, all of them cooing similar remarks. “Is Mikau beating up on you? Is he driving you too hard?”

“Ah… Um, no I can handle it.” Link replied.

“You’re such a big, strong guy, Link!” remarked one of the other Zora, and all three of the females squealed and praised Link in exaggerated agreement. 

Mikau’s jaw was nearly on the ground by this point. Finally, he shook himself and straightened his back. “Ruto!” he called, and Ruto cast an eye at him in vague recognition. “I’m a strong guy,” Mikau pointed out. “I’m teaching Link everything I know. You ladies should be doting on me, yeah?”

“You have a girlfriend, Mikau,” Ruto reminded him, and she stuck her tongue out.

“So does Link,” Mikau retorted. “Come swim with me, Ruto, ladies, yeah? Leave my bruddah alone to his practice. _Ewill seawia mi wyasnacha, nya?”_

Link wasn’t sure what Mikau said, being it in the Zora language, but Ruto and her friends turned on the musician with fury, hitting him and chiding him in their softer freshwater dialect. Mikau shrunk down, shielding his head, but he was clearly enjoying the attention if the satisfied grin on his face was any tell. 

The good-natured assault was cut off when a Zora warrior emerged from beneath the surface of the cavern’s pool. Link and Mikau were practicing on the pool’s shore, and now the warrior crawled up onto the stone to collapse beside the group of Zora and one Hylian. He was too weak to stand--or perhaps too frightened. With wide, strained eyes, the warrior studied the four Zora, who stared back in confusion, all hints of amusement gone. The warrior’s eyes next latched onto Link, who was standing alone once again. “Link!” the Zora called, and he made to stand, only to collapse forward with a sob the next second. 

Link and Ruto were there to catch him. They dropped to their knees and propped the Zora up between them while Mikau and the two nameless Zora watched. 

“Relax,” Link soothed with a firm arm around the Zora’s shoulders. “It’s Cavio, isn’t it?” The Zora nodded. 

“Weren’t you part of the scouting party to Lake Hylia?” Ruto asked.

Cavio nodded again and resumed his sobbing. _“Dead!”_ he wailed. “All of them! The captain. Dorson. Crevar--all of them! Killed by Dark Link’s monster!”

Link stiffened, his eyes going wide, and his mind ground to a halt. Had Darcel truly killed a benign scouting party? No, it couldn’t be. Would he go so far as to seek out victims who would otherwise leave him alone?

“He allowed me to live,” Cavio continued in a whisper, and Link forced himself to focus on the Zora again. The female Zora were starting to cry, and Mikau, usually so animated, was oddly still on his feet. “He said I could live so that I could deliver a message to you, Link.”

Link couldn’t speak, so it was Ruto who asked, “And what is that message?”

“Link is to meet Dark Link for battle in the lakebed temple within three sundowns from now,” Cavio relayed. “If he fails to do so, Dark Link will come after him--and he will kill anyone in his way.”

Ruto gained her feet. “I have to tell my father,” she said before departing. 

Link heard her running up the path to the throne room, calling for her father. With his body feeling as heavy as lead, he stood up and beckoned the remaining female Zora to him. “Take care of Cavio for me, will you? He’s been through a lot.” They nodded and helped Cavio to his feet, reassuring him with gentle touches and words. 

The girls walked away, supporting the warrior between them, and Mikau broke his frozen stance and cursed in Zoran. “What are we going to do?” he asked Link. 

A frown line had formed on Link’s brow. It deepened when he looked up at Mikau. “We’re going to continue practicing. I need to get better if I’m going to knock any sense into my brother.”

“Sure, bruddah, no problem,” Mikau said with a nod. “But what are you going to do about reaching the temple?” When Link’s expression shifted to confusion, Mikau reminded him, “The temple is at the bottom of the lake, but you won’t swim in deep water. You haven’t even gone into the cavern pool since you arrived.”

Link had no answer for Mikau, so he brushed the question off and absorbed himself in training. Mikau, sensing the Hylian’s hesitation, did his best to help Link with the distraction. The sound of their clashing weapons--one organic, one hard steel--echoed through the caverns off and on for hours until Mikau begged for the longer relief of a night’s rest. 

“We all don’t have the endurance of a Goron, yeah?” he remarked when disappointment shadowed Link’s face. “Let me sleep, Link. We’ll pick up tomorrow morning.”

Link nodded and relaxed his tense body. He let Mikau go with reluctance, and soon he was alone by the shore of the cavern pool. The smooth surface of the pool pulled his eyes, and he looked to it with a shudder. No Zora swam in the water at this late hour. In fact, the pool had laid still for most of the day--ever since the rest of the kingdom had learned of the scouting party’s casualties. Another group had retrieved the bodies from Lake Hylia, and a service would be held in the morning. The thoughts of the needless deaths stung at Link, for he knew it was his fault the Zora had died. Darcel was after him, and he had killed the Zora as a message to Link.

The sound of flat, wet footsteps met Link’s pointed ears, and they twitched in recognition of King Zora’s step. Link turned and bowed in greeting to the large Zora when he hopped over. Once Link had straightened up, he found a bundle held out towards him in the king’s small hands. 

“This is the tunic and armor I promised you,” King Zora explained when Link looked in confusion at the bundle. “The garments of the ancient hero--your ancestor.”

Link accepted the bundle with a word of thanks and undid the cloth surrounding the tunic and armor. The tunic was dark blue and of a smooth weave, allowing no drag when swimming. The armor was light to enable speedy travel through the water, but Link found it strong. Arranged in small plates like scales, it formed to his body almost like a second skin when he swapped his Kokiri tunic for the new one. 

There was a hat, too. The styling was similar to his usual hat, but with markings stitched in to suggest the curves of a Zora’s head fin. A shaped band of armor held the hat in place. It was similar to the Zora’s full helmets with the eyes of a fish and the suggestion of a mouth that encircled the edges of Link’s face. Link noticed two small hooks, one on each side of the interior of the band where the points met his jaw line. “What are these used for?” he asked King Zora. 

“Those are to hold the stretched lung of a _rae_ fish,” King Zora explained.

“The what of a what?”

King Zora smiled patiently. “The _rae_ fish is a lunged fish native to our cavern pool. They are inedible, but we have found that when removed from the fish’s body, the lungs filter oxygen from water much like our own gills and skin. If you wear the stretched lung of a _rae_ fish over your mouth and nose, you will be able to breathe endlessly underwater.”

“Oh,” Link said, and he smiled shyly. “That’s if I make it into the water,” he added. When he saw concern flash across King Zora’s face, Link quickly put in, “Don’t worry, Your Majesty, I’m going to do my best to conquer this fear so that I can meet my brother. And if I can’t, I’ll leave your kingdom so that no one is put into danger when he comes after me.”

King Zora nodded--although he was so round it was more of a jerk of his head. “I appreciate that, Link. You are so much like the ancient hero of old. I have full confidence in your success. Now, I think it would be best if we both got some rest. There is much to do tomorrow in preparation to see our departed into the afterlife.”

Link’s gut clenched. “King Zora?” he called before the ruler could hop away. “I’m sorry. It’s my fault those Zora were killed--”

“You cannot help your brother’s dark nature,” King Zora cut in. “He would have found some way to wreak destruction, whether you were in our kingdom or not. Think no more on it, Link. No one blames you, and we all admire your willingness to handle your brother yourself. But if you don’t mind, I think my people would appreciate it if you said a few words at the ceremony tomorrow.”

“Of course,” Link agreed. “They gave their lives in the service of not only the Zora Kingdom, but also Hyrule as a whole. I would be honored to speak for them.”

“Thank you,” King Zora replied with another nod. “And we will be honored to hear you speak, one warrior for others.” 

For the first time, such a title didn’t bring doubt to Link’s mind. He could feel a new kind of power within him--a power fitting of the title of warrior, swordsman, knight--and he felt confident in his ability to best Darcel in battle. So while his heart was heavy with the deaths of the Zora warriors, he walked with a light step to the room that he was sharing with Mikau. 

The Zora was already asleep; slung in a hammock and snoring gently. His webbed feet twitched occasionally, and Link had to stifle a snicker of laughter. He changed out of the Zora tunic, folded it carefully, and set it aside for the morning before he slipped into his own hammock. He was soon snoring in sleep. 

#

Link sat on a straight edge of the cavern pool’s shore. His legs hung in the water below the knees, and his hands were braced against the ground on either side of his thighs. His fingers were tense within his gauntlets, and his eyes were tight as he looked down into the water. In front of him, Ruto treaded water while two other Zora--Cavio and Mikau--floated nearby, ready to offer support if it was needed. 

“Here, Link,” Ruto said, and she offered him the lung of a _rae_ fish. It was a deep bluish-purple color, and it felt as smooth as silk. It stretched like rubber when Link hooked first one end over the left hook of his hat’s band and the other end over the right. The stretched lung pressed against his lower face as tight as a hand, yet Link found he could breathe easily through it. He took a moment to adjust it; tucking it further under his chin and checking the edges for any gaps. When finished, he nodded to Ruto, who nodded back. 

“All right, easy now… Just slip in…”

Easier said than done. Link’s body didn’t want to move any further into the water. Even this position, sitting with half of his legs submerged, had taken several minutes’ adjustment. The water was as clear as crystal, but deathly cold. Link could feel it through his leggings. His chest panged with phantom pain, and his breath caught in his throat with an odd choking sound. 

Ruto sensed his fear, and she flashed him a reassuring smile. “It’s okay,” she said. “Link, we would definitely know if something bad was in this pool. Just slip into the water. You don’t have to dive down if you’re not ready yet. You can keep your head above the waterline for now.”

_For now._ Those two words sounded terrifying in their simplicity. Link was safe _for now._ He was alive _for now._ Darcel was not coming after him _for now._ Yet soon… Soon… Everything would change. If not Darcel, it would be Vaati. Or Ganondorf. Or the shapes in the water, waiting to choke the air out of his lungs…

Link closed his eyes, and a tremble rocked his body.

Ruto cast a helpless look back at Mikau, who was floating on his back with his hands folded behind his head. He shrugged his shoulders at Ruto, but rolled over and dove beneath the water with barely a ripple. 

Two seconds later, Mikau jumped up out of the water, flipped in the air, and dove back down in one fluid movement. He surfaced, and laughed when he saw Link’s startled eyes. “Come on, bruddah! The water’s fine! Let me see if you’ve got the moves! Those Zora ladies will be fawning over _me_ from now on--unless you think you’re better?” He dove down again to flip up into the air a second time, adding an exhilarated whoop.

Link huffed. He wasn’t going to allow Mikau to continue showboating. He had grown to like the attention he received while training. The female Zora would watch him with admiration, cheering and encouraging him while playfully booing Mikau. Remembering their flirty smiles, Link edged himself over the lip of the shore and into the water. He knew how to swim from a childhood largely spent at Lake Hylia, so he was able to tread water easily. But his chest was already tightening with fear.

Ruto swam over to Link and smiled at him, pleased with his progress. “All right. Looking good, hero.” She winked, and Link’s face flushed red above his _rae_ fish mask. “Cavio, Mikau, give him room. Link, whenever you’re ready to dive, we’ll be right with you, okay?”

Link nodded, and with a gentle push of his feet against the shore at his back, he propelled himself across the surface of the water. He soon adjusted to the temperature, and the gentle lap of the waves against his body became almost comforting. Ruto was right; there was nothing in the water that could harm him. After a quarter hour’s swim, he felt confident enough to try to dive. “I’m ready,” he said to Ruto. 

Link’s voice was slightly muffled by his mask, but Ruto understood him. She nodded and swam ahead to take up a position in front of him. They were now at eye level, and the Zora princess’s gently encouraging expression reminded Link so much of Zelda, he felt he could try anything. He took a moment to collect his courage as he bobbed in the water. When he was ready, he took an unnecessary deep breath and relaxed his arms to drop below the water’s surface. 

Water encased Link entirely, and for the first time in several minutes he was reminded of its coldness, its closeness, and its shifting shadows. He tensed, his eyes widening before shutting tightly. He struggled against enemies that weren’t there. His armor, although light, had dragged him down a few feet below the water, and in that small distance he forgot which way was up and which way was down. The _rae_ fish lung felt tight and choking over his mouth and nose. He held his breath, convinced he would inhale water and drown if he attempted to breathe through the mask. 

Hands grabbed at Link, and he jerked out of their grips. They reached again for him; pulling at him; trying to tug him deeper into the water to drown--or so he thought. He wished he had his sword, but it was for this exact reason that he had left it behind in his room. In his panic, Link ripped off the mask over his face and sucked in water. His chest tightened, his body jerked in a spasm, and his hands found the edge of the shore. He dragged himself up onto solid ground with a shallow gasp. 

“This isn’t good,” Cavio remarked softly while he, Mikau, and Ruto watched Link cough up water. 

Ruto would have agreed, but she didn’t want to voice the remark aloud again. She swam to the shore and tried to soothe Link with praise. “You were doing so well,” she commended with a strained smile. The smile faltered when Link turned red-rimmed eyes onto her. 

“Don’t make me go in again,” he whispered, and tears worked down his wet face. “Please… not again. I can’t…” Link dropped his forehead to the stone and clenched his eyes shut. 

“Link…” Ruto began, but she found she had nothing to say. What words could she offer that would sweep away such a deep fear? With a shake of her head, Ruto turned away from the shore and swam back to her two friends. 

“He needs help--help we can’t give,” Ruto whispered. “He’s not going to listen to us no matter how hard we try.”

“Maybe a closer friend could help?” Cavio suggested. Ruto and Mikau shrugged. “Let me go and ask Shade,” Cavio continued. “Perhaps he’ll have a suggestion.”

“Hurry then,” Mikau urged. “We’re running out of time.” 

Cavio nodded and dove below the water for the nearest exit to the Zora River. 

Mikau cast a look at Link. The Hylian had his arms wrapped around his chest. His head was still against the stone, and his face was wrinkled in fear and grief. Navi had emerged to rest against his neck; offering what little companionship and warmth her light could provide. “Can the hope of all of Hyrule really rest on such a weak-willed, young land-walker?”

“He’s not weak-willed,” Ruto snapped, and Mikau ducked his head in shame of having uttered such a remark. “He’s just a little afraid. He’d be stupid not to be. But we’ll help him. He’ll be better--you’ll see.”

“You sound confident,” Mikau remarked. Ruto shot him a poisonous look. “Don’t get me wrong, Ruto. I’m confident in his skill too. It’s his _spirit_ I have concerns about.”

“Link is strong,” Ruto insisted with a nod. “He’ll save us all. I’m sure of it.”

“Well if you’re sure, then it’s a guarantee, yeah?” Mikau said with a roll of his eyes. He ducked below the water to avoid Ruto’s sharp hand. When he reemerged, Ruto nodded her head towards Link. 

“Get him up and into some dry clothes. Maybe we can try this again once Cavio comes back with word from Shade.” 

Mikau swam to the shore and climbed out. Ruto watched him encourage Link to his feet and walk the Hylian away. She had to quell her own doubts when she saw the shake in Link’s body.

“Din, Nayru, and Farore, I hope you have a plan for him,” Ruto whispered. “To cast him into this fate with no help would only be cruelty. Please guide him. Help him find the hero he is deep inside.” Her small prayer said, Ruto swam to the shore and climbed out of the water to trace Link’s and Mikau’s steps away from the pool.


	18. The Weight of Wisdom

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After honing his skills with Mikau, and overcoming his hydrophobia with Sheik's help, a second trial is placed on Link's shoulders, and he faces his brother in battle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for your support!
> 
> This is a _long_ chapter--a bit over 12K--so plan your reading accordingly!
> 
> Because Nayru gave the spirit of law to Hyrule I always try to reflect that in her appearance; hence her judge-like presentation in this chapter.
> 
>  **TW:** Gore and a brief reference to assault are in this chapter.
> 
> **Also please note I've upped the rating to reflect the violence and references in this fic.**
> 
> Kudos and feedback are always welcomed, thank you! Please enjoy.

# In the Shade of a Hero

### The Weight of Wisdom

“Wake up, Link.”

The voice was familiar, but so out of place that Link didn’t know how to respond at first. He eventually decided he was dreaming. He rolled over in his hammock, and tried to bury his mind deeper into sleep.

“Wake up, I said!”

The hammock was flipped--and Link along with it. He hit the stone floor of his guestroom with a cry of surprise and looked up with a glower ready on his face. It softened into a look of confusion when he saw Shade staring down at him. “What are you doing here?” Link asked.

“I heard you were having some trouble,” Shade replied. 

The room was otherwise empty. Link had slept longer than the early-rising Zora. With a grimace when his dropped body was moved, he stood up and took a seat on his hammock. He refused to meet Shade’s eyes. 

“Your brother is after you,” Shade continued. “And you still haven’t gotten over your ridiculous fear of water.”

“It’s not so ridiculous from my side,” Link grumbled. 

“Then perhaps you need another’s point of view,” Shade suggested.

Link scoffed. He didn’t intend to be disrespectful, but nightmares involving water, blood, and a shadowy shape that all-too-closely resembled Darcel had plagued his sleep. He was tired from the dreams, and tired from the fear he was put through in the water the previous day. That tiredness made him cranky and on edge. “Are you suggesting I should take _your_ point of view?” he asked in an acid tone. 

“Not mine. Sheik’s,” Shade replied, and he moved aside to reveal the thin Sheikah who was standing behind him, so far unnoticed by Link. “He’s going to help you,” Shade continued.

“Hello, Link,” Sheik greeted with a nod of his head. “How are you making out? Learning a lot?”

“Sheik?” Link straightened his back and smoothed down his sleep-tousled hair. “A fair bit,” he answered with a nonchalant shrug. His eyes, dulled from sleep, brightened. “Hey! I have to show you this great move Mikau taught me--”

“I’ll leave you to it then,” Shade said in a low voice to Sheik while Link carried on describing the helm-splitter. “Only two sundowns left,” the swordsman added before departing.

Link didn’t see Shade leave, as his eyes were on his hands as they moved in mimicry of his jump over Mikau. The hands stilled, and his head lifted when Sheik sat down beside him. The hammock rocked under the added weight, and Link quieted. They rode out the last of the hammock’s sway in silence.

“Impa didn’t want me to come,” Sheik spoke up. His right hip and thigh were flush against Link. “Shade had to convince her that you would be utterly useless without my help.”

Link chuckled. “Nice to know his lack of faith in me is good for something. So, what’s your plan?”

“I don’t know,” Sheik admitted with his own chuckle. “It happened rather fast. I don’t even know why Shade thought I could help more than Impa.”

“Impa can be scary,” Link remarked with a slight widening of his eyes, and Sheik smiled. “Maybe he thought more fear would make things worse.”

“So companionship is the answer,” Sheik said. His right hand closed the small distance to Link’s left.

“I don’t know about that, but it’s definitely nicer,” Link said. His fingers marked the hills and valleys of Sheik’s knuckles, and his head dropped. Their lips caught on each other for a few blissful seconds before Sheik pushed Link away with a gentle hand. He pulled back, and Sheik stood up from the hammock. 

With shoulders hunched, Sheik paced a short distance before turning around to face Link again. “Did you ever have the feeling that you’re a million miles away from someone who’s standing right beside you?”

Link thought on the question, and his mind at once went to both Darcel and his late mother. He nodded.

Sheik reclosed the distance to Link. “I can be your friend, Link, but that’s all. Impa’s right. It isn’t fair to either of us to take this as far as we want.”

“I understand,” Link said with a heavy heart. “I’m sorry,” he added in a whisper, and he hugged his arms. “I’m going to tell Zelda about us, Sheik. I have to. I don’t want those same million miles to grow between us.”

“Of course,” Sheik said. He took hold of Link’s face between his hands and kissed the top of the Hylian’s head. “Get washed and dressed. Mikau’s probably waiting for you. I’ll be around for when you need me.”

“Thank you,” Link said. He squeezed Sheik’s hand a final time before it pulled away.

#

Link expected Sheik to encourage him to approach his fear at once. Instead, as promised, the Sheikah was a constant companion to Link throughout the day. During meals the two of them spoke easily with each other, and with the Zora. When Link picked up training with Mikau, Sheik watched from the sidelines along with several other onlookers. While the Zora came and went, Sheik never moved. His red eyes studied Link endlessly, and he rewarded the Hylian with praise and applause when it was due.

The day ended with the second of the three sundowns Link had left before he was to meet Darcel in the lakebed temple. Not once had Sheik attempted to address Link’s hydrophobia, leaving him to go to bed with a strange feeling of disappointment after saying goodnight to the Sheikah. 

#

“Wake up, Link.”

The voice was different, but the words were the same. Link recognized it, and this time he didn’t put it off as a dream. He opened his eyes and looked up into a red gaze that hovered over him.

“Come take a swim with me,” Sheik invited.

“It’s late,” Link mumbled through a sleep-heavy mouth.

“But the cavern water glows so beautifully at night when the fluorescent fish swim. Come on, let’s go.” The Sheikah retreated from the room on soft feet so as to not wake Mikau. 

Link dragged a tunic over his head before following. He emerged into a dim hall, still pulling his arm through a sleeve, and followed the dull glow of distant torchlight to the central cavern of the Zora kingdom. As he walked, he made to rub the sleep from his left eye. He dropped his hand almost at once. The dimness of his vision in the right eye reminded him of his payment to wield the weapon he had worked hard to master the past few days.

Link soon discovered it wasn’t torchlight leading him to the tunnel’s mouth. It was the glow of the cavern pool. Thousands--perhaps millions--of points of flashing light lit up the water, making it glow with a soft, white light. The source was scores of fish that swam in the water through the channels between different parts of the kingdom, and in and out of the tunnel leading to Lake Hylia. Stunned by the beauty, Link could only stare from the shore and watch the light shift beneath the water’s surface. 

The air hummed shortly and powerfully. Link jerked his head up from the water to watch a shell of pale blue magic arc over the entirety of the cavern pool and part of its shore. Link was caught within the shell; it ended a few feet behind him. He turned to mark it with a confused expression.

A hiss of evaporating water met Link’s ears next. He turned forward in time to see Din’s Fire shoot across the surface of the water in a low blanket of flames. The evaporating water created thick fog in its wake. Trapped by the shield of Nayru’s Love, the fog soon enveloped Link in blinding whiteness.

“Walk forward,” called a voice. 

Was that Sheik’s voice? It sounded different due to the fog warping the sound. Link decided to follow the voice’s instructions. He walked forward through the fog… and stopped when his bare feet encountered water.

“Easy,” Sheik said. The voice was right beside Link now. He felt the Sheikah’s hand at the small of his back, but the fog blocked him from view. “It’s only water.”

“Right,” Link said with a tremble in his voice.

A few notes carried through the fog. That was Sheik’s lyre. The notes moved back and forth along a scale; first high to low, and back up to high. As soon as the music caught Link’s ear, it adjusted its speed. The notes scaled up and down faster, and Link realized it was reflecting the patter of his nervous heart. The music was harsh.

“This is your fear,” Sheik said. His voice carried over the discordant notes, but he remained hidden in the fog. “It’s out of control, and thus out of harmony with the rest of your body and mind. I want you to listen to your fear, Link, and get it back under control. Time your breaths to the scales. When the notes go up, breathe in. When they go down, breathe out. Force your fear to work for you, not against you.”

It was hard to concentrate on these instructions when the cavern’s water lapped at Link’s shins, and the music fell hard on his ears. He closed his eyes to further block out input, and he attempted to quell his fear. His breaths slowed over time, and he clamped down on the fluttering bird of panic in his chest. 

Several long minutes passed before Link realized the music in his ears was slower, and softer. His breaths matched its easy pace. He opened his eyes and discovered the water around his legs wasn’t as cold as he first thought.

“Good job, Link,” Sheik praised. “Now we’re going to take a few more steps into the water. If you can submerge yourself I promise something good will happen.”

“Really?” Link said with a nervous chuckle. “What--I’ll die and not have to worry about being a hero anymore?”

“No. You’ll get to speak to Zelda.”

“What?” Link looked around, but there was only fog. “What do you mean? Is she here?”

“No,” Sheik said. “She is somewhere else in hiding. But water is the perfect medium for spiritual meetings. I can initiate one, but you must get a hand on your fears first. It erodes the connection.”

“Okay,” Link whispered. He swallowed around a dry throat and took another step further into the water. Sheik’s lyre accompanied the movement in an easy scale of rising notes. Link took another step and exhaled, following the lyre as it moved back down. This… He could do this. He _had_ to do this. It wasn’t just for Zelda’s sake. It was for his sake, and for Hyrule’s. 

“There’s nothing here that will hurt you,” Sheik continued. “You must convince yourself of that. Show courage, Link. The reward will be worth it. The reward will always be worth the effort put out, even if it’s not always clear how.”

Sheik’s tone was soothing, and his words were convincing. Link took yet another step further down the sloped shore, and another, and another. He continued into the water, timing his steps and breaths to the music, until it came up to his waist. The light from the fish was magnified by the fog, and it was like walking through a sunlit cloud. The sensation of weightlessness was added once Link journeyed far enough out into the pool where he was forced to tread water. 

Something shifted in the water beyond Link’s limited field of vision. It wasn’t a fish. It was something bigger, swimming through the water like him. A Zora? Or Sheik? The music had stopped now. 

Wanting to know, Link swam forward a few more feet--or perhaps a few more yards. It was difficult to tell in the clouded conditions. But he knew when to stop when the tips of five fingers fell upon the soaked fabric of his tunic. Their touch was light, but to Link they were made of stone. He knew the shape of the fingertips against his chest just as well as he knew his own name. The touch stopped him dead.

“So you just needed the right bit of encouragement, huh?” someone teased.

“Zelda--” Link reached into the fog for her, but he forgot he was treading water, and he dipped below the surface for a few seconds. He emerged gasping for air, but not out of fear. The music was in his chest now. It beat down his fear and smoothed his breaths. 

“Yes,” Zelda’s voice confirmed. 

Link couldn’t see Zelda, and her fingers had fallen away from his chest, but he could sense her presence just beyond the veil of the fog. “You escaped,” Link said. “From Ganondorf.”

“Yes.”

“But this is just your spirit, right? So where are you really? Does Impa know?”

Zelda didn’t answer the questions. When she next spoke again, she sounded troubled. “I’m worried about you,” she said. “I think about what you have to face, and I get scared. At times you seem so strong, Link, yet at other times I’m unsure if you’ll even succeed.”

“I’ll succeed,” Link said to the unseen princess. “I have to succeed for your sake.”

“But I’ve already escaped Ganondorf,” Zelda reminded him.

“Yet Hyrule is still in his grip,” Link added. “So it’s my job to save this land.”

“I’m glad to hear that,” Zelda said, and she indeed sounded pleased by Link’s dedication to his task. A shadow moved in the fog. “Close your eyes, Link.”

Link did as he was told, and he felt the touch of Zelda’s fingers return--this time on his cheek. A pair of lips pressed a kiss to his mouth, and he returned it with longing. The act filled him with fresh resolve, and banished the last of the dark veil of fear over his mind. He forgot about the water around him; it was no longer a threat. Nothing felt like a threat in the wake of hearing and touching Zelda once again. Link opened his eyes. He wanted to see Zelda as well. 

He found himself treading water alone. The fog was gone, and the fishes’ light was back to its normal intensity. 

A strummed note caught Link’s ear, and he turned in the water to look back at the shore. Sheik was seated on a boulder close by the cavern wall. He plucked at his lyre with an idle hand and caught Link’s eyes. “Did you have a nice swim?”

“Sheik…” Link swam to the shore and walked out of the water. “Thank you.”

“It was nothing,” Sheik replied.

“No, really.” Link turned around and looked out across the cleared pool. “You showed me a way to fight my fears, and you connected me to Zelda--even if it was only briefly.” He turned back to smile at the Sheikah. “I want you to know you hold an equal place in my heart beside her.”

Sheik looked down at his lyre. Link was sure there was a blush in the Sheikah’s cheeks. “You should get some sleep,” Sheik eventually said. “Tomorrow you must face your brother in the lakebed temple.”

Some of Link’s high spirits dropped. “Right,” he murmured. “Well… Goodnight, Sheik.”

“Goodnight, Link,” Sheik returned. He continued to pluck at his lyre as Link walked away. The notes followed Link through the tunnel to his room. Once there, he exchanged his wet clothes for dry ones, and fell into his hammock. Sheik’s distant music lulled the Hylian back into sleep.

#

Link was dreaming. It was the only explanation for what he was seeing. But everything looked, sounded, and felt so real… It was impossible to push it off as a mere dream. 

Link stood on the plateau of rock that was a popular basking spot in the cavern pool. He was dressed in his Zora tunic and armor, and he faced the large waterfall that cascaded down into the pool from King Zora’s throne room. A fine mist leapt up at the base of the waterfall where it met the pool, and soft waves undulated out in ever-widening arcs across the pool’s surface. In contrast to these waves, another source to the right of the waterfall was producing its own rings of disturbed water. It was a powerful wind emitting from a column of blue light that stretched from the ceiling down to the water. 

Link saw something like this before in Volvagia’s nest. At that time, Din had appeared before him in a red column of light. She had spoken of a trial before resurrecting Volvagia. When Link centered his gaze on this blue column of light, he saw a figure within it as well. 

_Step forward, descendant of the ancient hero._

There was only water surrounding the plateau, but Link was unafraid. He took a step forward beyond the edge of the plateau, and his boots encountered an invisible walkway above the water. Link walked a straight line over the undulating water to the column of light, and fixed his eyes on the figure within it. Like Din, this was another Goddess.

“Nayru,” Link whispered, recognizing her from the effigies spread throughout Hyrule. 

Nayru’s eyes were covered by a blindfold, but she bowed her head briefly in recognition of the spoken name. Her hands were held out, and they moved up and down as if in constant counterbalance to each other. When she spoke, she used the same strange language as her sister had--speech and images projected into Link’s mind. 

_In the sacred Fire Temple, you passed your first trial,_ Nayru said, and Link’s head was filled with the images of his battle against the ancient dragon Volvagia. He saw himself swing the Megaton Hammer one-handed--a feat that was supposed to be near-impossible--and land blow after blow against the fiend. After the images faded from his mind, Link refocused on Nayru.

 _Now we put forth another trial,_ Nayru continued, and Link was filled with a strong feeling of regret that was not his own. _You have proven you can wield Power. Now you must carry the weight of Wisdom._

“How hard could that be?” Link asked. Instead of receiving a direct answer, he noticed a light grow behind him. Link turned around to see the water glowing with the light of all of the fluorescent fish beneath its surface. The light combined, and images rose off of the surface of the water like a moving painting. Link recognized the silver hair and red eyes of his brother, Darcel. This Darcel was still young--not a day over twelve. His eyes hadn’t yet turned with the anger that would eventually define him. 

Nayru spoke while Link watched the images. _Your brother wandered into the sanctuary of the Lost Woods without protection, and there a seed of evil took root in him. Your efforts to save him, along with the mushroom granted to you by the Forest Sage, should have been enough to bury that seed into a dormant sleep for the rest of your brother’s days. But someone else swept aside all of that effort and began to nourish the seed with dark sustenance._

“Ganondorf,” Link whispered, and even as he said the name he watched Darcel accelerate to the age of seventeen. His eyes grew dark and distant, his manner more aloof, and always the looming shadow of a Gerudo hung over him. 

_Your brother is now consumed in darkness, and is dependent on it,_ Nayru continued. _His spirit is shattered--a mere shadow of what it once was. To remove the darkness would mean his demise. He cannot be saved anymore._

“That’s not true!” Link insisted, but already the image was shifting again. Link saw Darcel’s form fade into a ghostly blue. A black flame burned within the blue shell of the young man. Its light cast two shadows: one tall and dark as pitch, and the other pale and sickly; its hands clutching at its face, and its mouth open in a white wail of despair. 

“Stop it!” Link shouted when a faint scream began to fill his ears, growing louder and louder. “Stop it! It’s not true! I can save him! _I can save him!”_

The noise and the light in the water dropped away at once, leaving Link standing in Nayru’s blue light with only the sound of the waterfall to his right, and the push of the wind at his back. The light of the fluorescent fish bloomed again, and Darcel’s form rose out of it. This time, he was dressed in a black tunic and cap with sword and shield in hand.

_This is the knowledge you must bear._

A streak of white light in the shape of a blade cleaved Darcel in half, and he shattered into a thousand pieces with a dying scream.

_You will slay your brother tomorrow._

All sound stopped, and every bit of light died, including Nayru’s soothing blue column. Link was left alone, drenched in cold darkness with only the Goddess’s final words echoing in his ears.

_Forgive us._

#

Beneath Lake Hylia’s island tree, Dark Link looked up from rolling his third cigarette to mark the glow of the fluorescent fish that swam in and out of the underwater tunnel to the Zora kingdom. Their light was soothing, and his fingers slowed. He could sense Morpha in the water. The monster, as always, was close by. He urged it towards the fish, and Morpha used its power to collect a portion of the water that contained a dozen of the fish. 

Dark Link stowed away his unlit cigarette and lay down on his stomach against the island’s grass. Morpha kept the fish in place by the island’s edge, and Dark Link trailed his hand through the water amongst them. Their light highlighted the shadows under his eyes. 

When the fish flickered and twisted away from Dark Link’s touch, he frowned. An inhuman burst of speed allowed him to snatch up one of the fish. He allowed Morpha to release the others while the fish in his hand was brought up into the open air. It stiffened and struggled in his grip while its gills worked at the water that wasn’t there. Dark Link helped it along with a squeeze of his fingers. The fish’s still body left behind glowing scales on his hand after he tossed it into the lake. He wiped them off against the grass, burned through his cigarette, and dove into the lake. Morpha carried him into the temple where he took up some meditation in his favorite room.

“Well, well…”

A half-hour into his meditation, Dark Link opened his eyes and narrowed them at the purple form that strode through the door at the far end of the wide room. The mist didn’t do enough to hide the Wind Mage’s smirk as he gazed around the altered walls, which showed an endless horizon broken by ruins. It wasn’t a natural part of the lakebed temple, but Dark Link had wanted to cover the walls.

“I didn’t know you were an artist, child,” Vaati said. He reached out to touch the unseen wall, and his fingers stuttered over a blemish. “Oh, I see. Hiding the results of our tantrums, are we?”

“What are you doing here?” Dark Link snapped. He gained his feet on the spot of land he had created in the middle of the flooded floor. He had taken a seat beneath the tree that grew on it.

“All of that power…” Vaati walked along the hidden wall, and his hands bumped over more gashes and holes. “Ganondorf taught you many things, but not how to control yourself. Not all that surprising, given he barely has control over himself. Oh.” His eyes had found the tree. “Is that all you could manage? Poor child.”

“Get out!” Dark Link screamed. 

“Shush.” Vaati was unfazed by Dark Link’s ire. He waved a delicate hand in dismissal. “I will stay as long as I want. I gave you this place, after all.” His friendly eyes betrayed a flash of anger. “And I didn’t even get a word of thanks.”

“I said _get out!”_ Dark Link flexed his power, and Morpha’s tentacles burst through the room’s two doors. They sped towards Vaati, but the Wind Mage countered them with a gust of wind that dropped the tentacles to the floor as useless splashes.

“Now, now.” Vaati wagged a finger while dark power sparked over Dark Link’s shoulders. “You’ve let that little bit of darkness in you go to seed, so I’ll forgive a lapse in manners. The gods know I can be impolite in my moments of inner turmoil. But really, child, I expected more from the kin of such a nice young man as Link.”

Vaati allowed Dark Link to move in; to put a hand around his throat; to squeeze. The Wind Mage’s back hit the wall, and he stared with dull eyes at the furious gaze that flashed at him from within Dark Link’s pale face. He could go without taking a breath, and the dark power that sparked across him was only a tickle. Vaati laughed before he whispered, “He could kill you tomorrow. He’s strong enough now. Aren’t you worried, child?”

 _“Child,”_ Dark Link hissed. “I’m so tired of hearing that word. Does it feel good to put others down when you look younger than them?”

“Does it feel good to steal another’s life given you have none to call your own?” Vaati returned. Dark Link’s teeth clicked together in a grimace. “This body wasn’t my first choice. But the boy it belonged to was such a willing host… And I’ve come to learn that youth has its advantages. People think you’re weak. They think they can hurt you. They don’t look for the danger signs--like you’re failing to do right now.”

Dark Link finally felt the pressure against his stomach. He looked down to find Vaati’s nails had lengthened. They were pressed into his black tunic in a threat to rip open a hole in his intestines.

“The constant sound of this pathetic host’s mewling is made more bearable by the fact that I can get close to someone and make them bleed--all because they don’t perceive me as a threat.” Vaati smiled. “Do I get my ‘thank you’ now?”

Dark Link lifted his eyes and knocked Vaati’s head against the wall. The Wind Mage grunted and slipped out of the Hylian’s hands to drop to his knees on the floor. He felt at the back of his head with a grimace. “Pathetic,” he remarked, and he gained his feet. “Even your brother managed to draw blood on me.”

“Get out,” Dark Link ordered a third time. It was a whisper, and he followed it up with a final glare.

Vaati scoffed and shook the water out of his clothes. “I don’t even know why I bothered,” he said before vanishing in a burst of wind.

#

Ruto stared with concern into Link’s eyes, which were dull and cast downward at the bowl of fish soup in front of him. “You look troubled,” the Zora princess remarked. 

Link didn’t appear to hear her, but Ruto continued, “I’m sorry I didn’t wake you when Sheik left, but you were still sleeping, and you looked to be in the midst of a dream. And you know what they say--it’s unlucky to wake a dreamer.”

Link raised his head slightly and turned his dim eyes onto Ruto. “What?” he murmured with a clear lack of comprehension. 

Ruto sighed and shook her head, dismissing her words. “Forget it,” she said. Link turned his head back down to his lunch, but he didn’t pick up his spoon to take a bite.

Mikau, who had watched this small exchange from across the table, sat up straighter and cast Link an encouraging smile. “Don’t worry, bruddah. I’m sure everything will work out. Darcel will come around to his senses--he just needs a firm talking-to, right? That’s what you think?”

Link looked up again, his expression now pained, and he shook his head once before lowering his gaze a second time. 

Mikau sighed, his entire body heaving with the motion, before he stood up. “Come on, Link,” the Zora said, suddenly serious. “Let’s get in a little bit of practice before you leave for Lake Hylia. Show me the helm-splitter one last time.”

In silence, Link followed Mikau to an open area by the cavern pool’s shore. The Hylian already had his sword and shield on his back. He would be leaving within the hour to face Darcel at the bottom of Lake Hylia. As he walked, Link reflected on the knowledge he now carried with him--Nayru’s assurance that he would kill Darcel today. 

Link didn’t want to believe it, and he was still trying to come up with a way to avoid such an outcome without putting himself or anyone else in danger. Ignoring the demand wasn’t an option, as Darcel would go after anyone between himself and Link. And doing nothing against Darcel in the fight would only lead to swift death and Hyrule’s guaranteed demise. 

“Perhaps if I subdue him somehow…” Link began in a low murmur, but he had to cease his thoughts for the moment. Mikau had already readied his fins into a sword and shield. Link took his shield into hand and unsheathed the Master Sword. The blade was a part of him now, more than ever before, and his thoughts focused when he gripped its hilt. He no longer felt the need to worry. He only had to do his best and everything else would fall into place--for good or for bad. 

Mikau charged at Link with a sharp fin held high. 

Link knew what to do. He guarded at just the right moment, warding off Mikau’s downward slice with a quick thrust of his shield. Under Link’s more superior strength, Mikau staggered back a step, and Link used this momentary second of advantage to flip up over his unsuspecting opponent’s head and slice at the back of his skull. As before, he turned his sword to strike Mikau with the flat of the blade. Despite this, the Zora toppled forward with a yell of surprise, and fell to his hands and knees. 

After a startled second of silence, Mikau began to laugh. “That was _crazy,_ bruddah!” he exclaimed before rising to his feet. He rubbed at the back of his head with a pained wince and laughed again. “Any harder and you might have knocked me out!”

Link jerked with surprise. Of course! All he had to do was knock Darcel out during the fight. A benign strike with the flat of the blade--perhaps performed during such a move like the helm-splitter--would down Darcel long enough to be restrained. Link could transport his unconscious brother out of the temple using Farore’s Wind, take him to a place beyond Ganondorf’s reach, and maybe with Shade’s help Darcel could be convinced to abandon his dark intentions.

“Mikau! _Miiiiikau!”_

Link turned to watch a Zora with similar markings to Mikau rise up out of the cavern pool and gain the shore. Catching sight of his fellow, the new Zora hurried over to Mikau and relayed the good news he had carried all the way from his homeland. “Lulu laid her eggs! All seven of them! They’re healthy and expected to hatch in a few weeks!”

 _“All right!”_ Mikau exclaimed with a whoop of joy. “I’m finally going to be a father!” And, laughing, he embraced his fellow Zora in celebration of the news. After parting, the two began to exchange a hurried conversation in their native tongue. The new Zora did most of the talking while Mikau nodded along and occasionally offered a comment or question. 

Link stood by and waited until the Zora parted ways. When Mikau was alone, he approached the Zora with his own congratulations. “It’s great news, Mikau,” Link added.

Mikau was shaking with excitement, and he latched his hands onto Link’s upper arms. “I’m going to be a father!” he repeated. “You have no idea how amazing this feels, bruddah!”

“I’m glad for you,” Link said with a smile. “Really, you’re going to be a great dad, Mikau.”

“I have to tell Ruto!” Mikau said. He dropped his hands and ran webbed fingers over his face. “Oh man, bruddah. I can’t believe this…” He hurried off with a wide smile on his face, calling for Ruto and anyone else within earshot who wanted to hear the news. 

Link truly was happy for Mikau, but the reminder of family brought the Hylian’s own woes back to mind. Link looked down at the Master Sword he held in his left hand. He thought on Darcel’s clear resentment of the blade, and of what Ruto had said that meant. Nayru’s vision had confirmed that suspicion--Darcel was a being of darkness. He couldn’t be saved.

“I don’t believe that,” Link murmured, and he sheathed his sword. “The real Darcel is still in there. I just have to keep looking for him.” 

#

Half an hour later, Link was dressed in his Zora tunic and armor, and he was treading water above the tunnel that led to Lake Hylia. Gathered on the shore were a few Zora who looked on at him with grim expressions. Ruto was amongst them, and she cast Link a strained smile when he looked at her.

“Good luck, Link,” Ruto wished. “Please take care of yourself. Come back safe and whole.”

“I will,” Link promised with a nod of his head. He accepted the _rae_ fish lung that Ruto passed down to him. He stretched and hooked the lung across his nose and mouth with one hand. Ruto nodded in approval once she saw it was fitted snugly.

The water erupted in a splash to Link’s left. He jerked around to see Mikau emerge from beneath the surface. The Zora cast a smile at Link and said, “I’m coming with you, bruddah.”

Link shook his head. “No--”

“I’m not going to abandon you in your time of need,” Mikau continued as if Link had never spoken. “What would I say to my little growing tadpoles if they learned I left my friend to fend for himself?”

 _“No,_ Mikau,” Link insisted. “If you get hurt, who’s going to take care of Lulu and your children? Please, stay here where it’s safe.”

Other Zora echoed Link’s plea, but Mikau shook his head at all of them. “I’ll be fine, bruddah,” he said, speaking directly to Link. “You’re forgetting who’s been teaching you the past few days. And two against one are better odds, so let’s go!” Mikau dove down below the surface and disappeared into the tunnel leading to Lake Hylia. 

“Link, please watch over him!” Ruto called. 

Link nodded to reassure her and dove as well, tracing Mikau’s path into the dark tunnel. The swifter Zora was already out of sight. 

When Link emerged onto Lake Hylia’s dry bank after a lengthy swim, he still found no sign of Mikau. A call of the Zora’s name earned no response, and with a puzzled look Link turned around to look out over the depleted lake. His eyes fell upon a series of watery tentacles towering out of the water. They shifted and undulated like unsteady pillars. More tentacles supported a young man clad in black who sat upon them as if they were a throne.

“Darcel,” Link greeted stiffly.

“It’s Dark Link,” the young man corrected. He leaned forward with an elbow braced upon a knee, and his chin resting in the upturned palm. “So you came as I asked,” Dark Link said while he studied the Hylian.

“Where is Mikau?” Link asked. He had a feeling Dark Link was behind the Zora’s sudden disappearance.

Dark Link didn’t disappoint Link. “Do you mean this fish I caught in my net?” he asked, and with a twitch of his free hand he bid another tentacle to rise out of the lake. Within its grasp, an exotically marked Zora struggled to free himself. As Link watched, the tentacle tightened its hold, and Mikau uttered a choked cry.

“Darcel, please stop!” Link cried from the shore. “Please,” he continued to beg. “He has a family, Darcel. His girl, Lulu… She just laid eggs. Please let him go. It’s me you want.”

“I care nothing for this fish, or for his supposed family,” Dark Link snarled, and he snapped his fingers.

The tentacle holding Mikau sank.

Link charged towards the lake, but another tentacle batted him away as if he was nothing more than a feather. Link sailed back and hit the ground as a strangled scream cut the air. The Hylian was quick to regain his feet, but not quick enough to save his friend. By the time he reached the edge of the shrunken lake, there was only a red stain in the water.

Link didn’t have long to mourn. Out of the corner of his eyes he saw the tentacles tremble as one, and they converged on him. But Link wasn’t going to be taken so easily. He unsheathed the Master Sword.

Once the tentacles had moved in close enough, Link swept the blade in a wide, horizontal arc. The Master Sword--the blade of evil’s bane--cut through the tentacles with no resistance. Along its path, the blade sliced through a sparking nucleus, and in a burst of water Morpha’s body fell apart and became a part of the lake once again. 

Dark Link’s throne held its shape for only a second longer than the tentacles held theirs, but it was enough time for him to back flip off of the chair. He disappeared into thin air mid-flip, and his voice echoed out over the lake.

_“The temple, false hero. We’ll finish things there.”_

“Yeah, we’ll finish them,” Link hissed. His hand tightened around the Master Sword’s hilt… and at the feeling of the sword’s firmness against his palm, Link was reminded of his dream from the night before. Was this how it happened? Would he, full of rage over Mikau’s death, storm the temple and cut Darcel down without pause? 

Link shook his head, relaxed the grip on his sword, and sheathed it. “I can’t go into this with a hot head,” he muttered aloud. “I have to stay calm and try my best to subdue Darcel.”

But on his way into the lake, Link glanced at the dissipating blood in the water. Anger spiked in him again when he thought on the senseless death. What else did Darcel deserve for ending Mikau’s life? For his killing of the Zora scouts? For his participation in Hyrule’s continued collapse? 

_You are not the one to judge,_ said a voice in Link’s head--his conscience, perhaps. Or maybe the voice that had occasionally guided him before on his journey so far. Whatever its source, it was right. It was not Link’s place to judge Darcel for his actions. His job was to stop the corrupted Hylian--preferably in a non-lethal way. 

His mind now focused and centered on calmer thoughts, Link took the time to find Mikau’s body and drag it to shore; the Zora’s chest was crushed. Link closed Mikau’s dead eyes and said a prayer for him. With this done, he dove into the lake and made the long swim into the temple at its bottom. 

After swimming through the open doorway of the temple and down a dark stone tunnel, Link emerged into open air to find himself in a tall room with a central column spanning the entire length from submerged floor to stone ceiling. The water from the lake had flooded the temple up to the column’s third tier, allowing Link an easy passage to it. He swam across and climbed up onto the tier where he paused to take stock of his surroundings. 

One door stood open on the left side of the temple. It was a clear indication of the path Link was to take, and he accepted it for what it was with his mouth set into a grim line. So Darcel wasn’t going to fool around with games. He had every intention of finishing Link as quickly as possible. But why not settle things right here? Why lead his opponent somewhere else?

 _He thinks he can unnerve me,_ Link thought as he swam across to the open doorway and stepped through it. _That’s not going to work. I’m over my fear of water now. He has no other advantage except dark magic, but I have the Master Sword on my side. That will slice through any darkness--just like it sliced through his pet monster._

The room beyond the open doorway was small and divided into three levels. Dragon statues dotted the walkways that bordered the room. Link made his way across the room via these walkways and climbed up onto a statue to reach the highest ledge where a second door stood open. Stepping into the room beyond, Link found himself standing in a seemingly endless room flooded by an inch or so of water. A thick mist shrouded the horizon in white, and strange broken arches of stone were cast around as if they were tossed carelessly by a giant. Link took a few steps further into the strange room, and the door closed behind him with a sharp clap. He turned and seized the handle, but no amount of turning, pushing, or pulling budged the door.

Navi was so quiet and shy Link often forgot she was always with him. Now she flew out of his collar and tugged on the point of his left ear. He turned his head to follow her, and his eyes fell upon a small plot of soil with a dead tree sticking up out of it. Nothing else was in the room, but Link could see another door on the far side. This one was closed too. Link didn’t waste time with running over to try to open it. He was sure this was the room where Darcel wanted to fight. 

Navi was acting strange. She kept flying in circles above Link’s head and tugging occasionally at his ear. He jerked his ear tip out of her small hands with a shake of his head. He drew his lips down into an irritated expression that Navi simply ignored. When her circling and tugging didn’t trigger a response in the Hylian, she flew back and forth between Link and the tree. 

“What is it, Navi?” Link asked. He caved in and walked to the tree, following Navi’s traced line through the air. His boots touched down on sandy soil, and the water he had collected from the floor darkened the dirt to a deep brown. Both the soil and the tree appeared solid--not an illusion like Link suspected the endless horizon to be. When he reached out to place a hand against the trunk, the uncovered tips of his fingers encountered rough bark. 

A voice spoke up above Link. “Enjoying the last few moments of your life, false hero?”

Link jerked his eyes up the length of the tree while Navi dove down into his collar. Seated on a crook of a thick branch was an all-too-familiar Wind Mage. Link narrowed his eyes at Vaati, who grinned back with sharp incisors exposed. He was picking at the dirt beneath his nails with a long dagger. “What do you want?” Link asked him.

“Only to say goodbye,” Vaati replied. 

“I don’t plan on going anywhere,” Link retorted.

Vaati grinned a little wider. “That’s fine. Your brother can die instead--I don’t mind. He’s no longer a favorite of mine, and it would save me the trouble if you do the job.”

Link shook his head. “I won’t kill him.”

“Then _he’ll_ kill _you,”_ Vaati countered. His eyes shifted to something behind Link, and with a small laugh the Wind Mage vanished in a gust.

Link turned, only now hearing a soft splash. His eyes first found a pair of black boots standing amidst fresh ripples that radiated out across the shallow water. Sweeping his blue eyes up, Link locked his gaze with a set of red irises. 

Despite his ultimatum, and despite the effort he had put out to make sure Link clearly got the message to arrive, Dark Link looked stunned to see the Hylian standing in the room. That shock soon darkened into fury. The red eyes narrowed, and Dark Link took hold of his black-hilted blade with both hands. He never drew his shield. Instead, he charged at Link with his sword held out at his side. Some indescribable scream of rage was leaving his lips. His boots fell with soft splashes that quickened as he picked up speed. 

Surprised by Dark Link’s speed and sudden rage, Link barely brought his shield out in time. He sidestepped the first blow and moved out into the more open space of the flooded floor. Dark Link’s sword sliced down into empty air, and its point left a shallow groove in the trunk of the tree. 

Dark Link didn’t pause between attacks. He at once turned and raised his blade again. Link raised his shield in response, and his opponent’s sword fell powerfully upon the metal with a resounding clang. A split second later another powerful blow fell; and another; and another. Link was pushed back under the force of them as his shield took the brunt of the attacks. Dark Link was swinging down again and again, putting all of his strength in every blow, and punctuating each one with a scream of rage. While Link bore the blows on his weakening shield arm, he thought he could hear words within the screams.

_“--took--her--You--took--her--”_

The shield was beginning to suffer from Dark Link’s mindless attacks. With each blow, Link could see sparks fall below the bottom edge of the shield to dissipate in the water. The metal was beginning to cave inward towards him in shallow lines. One such dented line was digging painfully into his arm, draining even more strength as it deepened with each strike. There was no time to roll out between blows, so while he still had the strength, Link thrust up at the precise moment Dark Link swung his blade down for another countless time. 

The two connected, and Link’s stronger thrust staggered Dark Link long enough to allow the Hylian to back up. He drew the Master Sword and took up a ready stance with shield and blade in hand. 

Dark Link growled at the show. He bared his teeth with the sound, and a tic ran over his cheek and forehead. 

Link wasn’t ready to fight Dark Link-- _Darcel_ his mind kept wanting to correct--so he attempted to plead with his brother first. “Stop this, Darcel,” Link begged. “I don’t want to hurt you.”

“You took her,” Dark Link hissed. His hands tightened around his sword’s hilt; the leather of his gauntlets creaked with the act. “You took _everything_ away from me!” he yelled next.

“That’s not true!” Link shouted back. “We both had the same opportunities! We grew up together as brothers--twins! Darcel, please…” Link lowered his sword and took a step forward. “Don’t you get it? Ganondorf has corrupted you. Vaati has, too. They’ve turned you into something you should have never been.”

Dark Link charged at Link, who was ready to dodge and parry this time. He warded off a blow with his dented shield and spun to try and catch Dark Link with the flat of his blade. The attack was easily dodged, and the two opponents put some distance between themselves as they eyed each other up for a new approach. 

Link tried again to plead with his brother. “Darcel, listen: We’re brothers--the same bloodline. We both come from a line of heroes who protected Hyrule. You don’t have to be on the darker side. You can be a hero, too!”

Dark Link laughed at Link’s words. The sound came across as slightly insane. “A _hero?”_ Dark Link snarled, spitting the word. “Zelda already has her hero, doesn’t she? What good does an ancient bloodline do to me?” His lips curled up into a twisted smile, and he fixed a strange, crazed look onto Link when he raised his sword to point it straight at the Hylian. “I took her, you know. You _know…”_ His smile twisted a little more when pained comprehension came to Link’s face. “So I have one thing over you. Despite your efforts, I got to her first.”

Link shook his head. He wanted to believe Dark Link was lying, but given his history… “Why would you do such a terrible thing?” Link asked. “Why would you hurt Zelda like that? _And you called yourself her friend once?”_ He slashed at the air with his blade, and anger spiked low in his gut. 

“That was the problem,” Dark Link hissed. “I was only _her friend.”_

“You’re not my brother,” Link said with an angry shake of his head. “You’re some twisted shell of him.”

“Finally we’re in agreement,” Dark Link said, and he spread his sword and shield to his sides in an invitation for Link to attack. His smile mocked the hero when Link hesitated to take advantage of the opening. “Come at me, Link, or I’ll come after you and end your life.” 

Link still refused to initiate an attack. Dark Link dropped his arms, fixed an expression of mounting fury on the Hylian, and charged again. 

Link had plenty of time to ready an offense. Instead, he sheathed the Master Sword and cast Nayru’s Love around himself. Dark Link’s sword rebounded off of the shield with an unheard clang. Link watched from within the muted walls of the magic while Dark Link slashed and stabbed over and over with his blade. It disheartened Link to see the mounting aggravation in Dark Link. Despite the words he had said moments ago, he wished he could comfort his brother and ease his anger. 

Dark Link opened his mouth in a last scream of frustration before he sheathed his sword, freeing his hands. Link wondered what Dark Link was up to now. The question was answered when magic crackled over Dark Link’s hands like lightning. He flashed a maniacal grin at Link, and drove his fingers into the shell of Nayru’s Love. The blue magic split as if it was nothing more than a parted curtain and burst apart into nothingness.

Link leapt back out of Dark Link’s immediate reach and dodged to the side when Dark Link sent a ball of crackling magic at him. The attack sailed past Link and continued on until it hit a hidden wall of the seemingly-endless room. A scorched crater appeared in thin air, and within seconds the illusion of the endless horizon was gone, replaced by blue tiled walls marred by gouges and holes. The tree on its sandy island blackened and withered into nothing more than a wisp of a trunk before it crumbled to dust.

A second ball of magical energy hit Link in the chest. The force of it sent him flying back across the room. He hit the door, broke through it, and bounced across the platform on the other side. His momentum carried him a little further over the edge and down to the lowest level of the dragon statue room. Link landed on his back and bit his tongue when his head struck the hard floor. 

Spitting blood, Link pushed himself up into a sitting position. His ears twitched at the sound of rapid footfalls, and he rolled to the side in time to avoid Dark Link’s downward strike. The blade buried itself several inches into the floor, and in the few seconds it took Dark Link to wrench it free, Link gained his feet and aimed a roundhouse kick to the side of his brother’s head. It was Dark Link’s turn to spit blood, and he did so around a livid curse. His sword came free, and he charged at Link again. 

Link was forced to draw his blade in order to counter and parry. He never swung his sword at Dark Link unless he thought he could land a hit with the blade’s flat. Unfortunately, each of these attempts was deflected. The two Hylians clashed and separated; sized each other up; met again; and separated and dodged around a column in the middle of the room. 

When Link was forced into a corner, Dark Link moved in, sensing his quarry was trapped. Link proved him wrong when he leapt up at the wall, and from there rebounded to one of the walkways that bordered the room. Dark Link was quick to follow him, using the same acrobatic move. His sword flushed with dark energy, and he swung it at Link, who ducked barely in time. The strengthened blade bit into a dragon statue instead, decapitating it.

Dark Link’s sorcery reminded Link not to lower his guard. He doubled his defense against his brother. It helped that Link wasn’t looking to deal out his own lethal blows. He could focus more on keeping up his guard as he looked for the opening that would allow him to incapacitate Dark Link. 

In one instance, Dark Link’s sword missed Link only to continue on to strike a hidden switch in the wall. Link heard ancient gears and waterworks come to life within the wall when the sword rebounded off of it. The sound of it gave Dark Link pause, and together the two Hylians watched vents open up around the room. Water gushed out of them at high speed, and it wasn’t long before the water level was halfway up to the walkways. 

There was a short span that separated Link and the floor in front of the room’s lower door. He leapt it easily, intending to escape into the main chamber of the temple. He was hoping to use the chamber’s more limited ground to corner and subdue his brother. Link’s boots barely touched solid ground when he felt the air shift behind him. He dodged to his left on instinct, and a blast of magic sailed by him. 

But Dark Link had intended for it to miss. The distraction drew Link’s attention away for the second it took for his opponent to leap the span and trip him up. Link fell back with a cry of surprise that was choked off when Dark Link wrapped both hands around Link’s throat. 

Link’s head hung over the edge of the platform, and he soon felt the coolness of the rising water at the back of his head. It cradled his skull in shocking cold, moved past his ears, and overtook his nose. Link flailed; he had conquered his fear of water, but drowning was still not an option for him. His hand snagged the front of Dark Link’s tunic, and with a powerful tug he dragged his opponent over his head and into the water. Dark Link’s choking hands fell away, and Link lifted his head out of the water with a gasp. He scrambled to gain his feet and ran out the door.

When Link paused to steady his footing on the floating platform on the other side of the door, a blast of magic struck him in the back. Like before, he was propelled forward with his Zora armor taking most of the hit. Link didn’t travel as far as before--the magic was cast in haste, and was weaker for it--but he fell forward and dropped into the water that flooded the temple’s main chamber. A second later a dull sound traveled through the water to Link’s ears, and he knew Dark Link had joined him in the drink.

The water was murky from years of going undisturbed save for special ceremonies. Link knew to fight underwater would do him no good, so he kicked for the surface. A strong arm snagged his knees, and he was yanked down a foot away from breaking the surface. The arm fell away a second later only to reaffirm its grip around Link’s neck in a chokehold. 

Link cried out in reflex, and the last of his stored oxygen left his mouth in a series of large bubbles. Instinct told him to struggle free. Instead, Link tried to calm his panicking mind and think logically. He had little time to spare on fear. He calmed his mind and body, imagining the steady notes of Sheik’s lyre, and guided a hand to one of the pouches on his belt. There he found the _rae_ fish lung he had stored away upon his arrival to the temple. Once he had the silky lung in hand, Link drove an elbow back and up, catching Dark Link under the ribs. 

Dark Link’s chokehold loosened. Link slipped out of it, spun around, and drove his heels into his brother’s chest. Dark Link drifted down, stunned and breathless, while Link hastily pressed the _rae_ fish lung against his mouth and nose. He took a deep breath and relaxed when his lungs filled with filtered air. Now steadier, he turned upward and kicked for the surface, using one hand to hold the lung against his face. 

A wall appeared out of the murky water. Link followed it up to break into open air. He lowered the _rae_ fish lung from his face and sucked in purer oxygen in hungry gulps as he treaded water. He pocketed the lung again to use both hands to hoist himself out of the water. He rolled over the edge of the wall he had come to and found two dragons staring down at him. They gave him a jolt before he realized they were only statues. They were guarding a large door that was rusted shut. 

Link rolled over onto his hands and knees, coughed to clear his lungs of lingering stagnant water, and gained his feet. A quick, altered casting of Din’s Fire dried his clothes. Navi emerged from Link’s collar when the magic rippled over it. The fairy twitched water from her small body and flew up into the air to stretch her wings. 

A dull, wet _fwump_ of sound met Link’s ears, followed by the staccato of water raining over stone. He turned in place to find Dark Link standing by the edge of the platform. He was drenched in water, and dark sorcery crackled over his body in a constant current. 

“Darcel, please stop,” Link begged with a shake of his head. “You don’t want to do this. Darcel. _Darcel!”_

Dark Link advanced, drawing his blade as he did, and Link was forced to unsheathe the Master Sword to once again face off against his brother. There was a newfound anger motivating Dark Link. It didn’t take form in crazed, sporadic blows like before. This time, Dark Link struck precisely and powerfully. It was all Link could do to keep his shield up between himself and his opponent. Between blows, he tried repeatedly to talk some sense into his brother. 

“Our father wouldn’t want you to do this!” Link said once. “Think how disappointed he would be with you!”

“He’s dead,” Dark Link countered indifferently. He and Link met in a shove, and Dark Link leaned in closer with ruby eyes blazing. “And need I remind you that he died to protect a hired man of the very kingdom you’re trying to revive?”

“Hyrule doesn’t need to be revived because it isn’t dead,” Link retorted.

 _“Yet,”_ Dark Link tacked on.

Link shoved Dark Link away, and the brothers put a few feet between themselves on an unspoken cue. 

Dark Link smirked while he paced a slow circle with Link staying opposite him. “Afraid?” he taunted. He swung his sword tip down and struck at the tiled floor of the platform. The strike sent up sparks. Dark Link tapped the sword again, and again, and again, sometimes as much as three times between footsteps. 

“Come on, hero. Strike me down,” Dark Link urged. “I’m right here waiting for you. Don’t you want to avenge Mikau’s murder? The murder of the Zora scouts? …Or the murder of our mother?”

Link closed his eyes. Although he had always suspected as much, the confirmation pained him more than he realized it would. “What happened to my brother?” Link whispered. “This can’t be all that’s left of you, Darcel--anger and spite and hatred? Don’t you have any hopes? Any dreams for happiness left?”

“You want to make me happy?” Dark Link asked, and Link opened his eyes. “Then _die.”_

Dark Link charged in a new attack. Link saw him approach as if in slow motion, and his heart cried out for the young, reckless, but gentle child his brother once was. There had to be something of the old Darcel that remained. To find it, Link had to get his brother out of the temple and away from anymore dark influences. He readied himself for one last attempt. 

Dark Link swung his blade, and Link thrust his shield like he was taught by Mikau. The stagger was a success. Dark Link’s sword rebounded, and he was pushed back a step; he rushed to regain his footing. 

Link was already up in the air; spinning his body over his opponent in a high arc. He swung the flat of the Master Sword’s blade towards the back of Dark Link’s head, putting all of his strength behind the act to ensure his brother was knocked out. He felt the blade connect, and a fraction of a second later he landed nimbly on his feet in a crouch behind Dark Link. He at once spun with his shield up in case his attack wasn’t strong enough.

Dark Link stumbled forward and dropped to his knees. Something was wrong. There was blood coursing down the back of Dark Link’s tunic; turning the black fabric even darker in a broad stripe. Link’s mind whirled. He had used the flat of his blade. He was sure--

Link noticed the crimson stain on his blade. Replaying the swift act in his mind, he saw everything had not gone as planned. The Master Sword had turned in his hand under its own power. He could see it now. The blade of evil’s bane had done what it was meant to do and had struck a source of evil--in this case Dark Link--with a devastating blow. 

Link tossed aside the Master Sword so that he no longer had to look at the blood staining it. He shouldered his shield and rushed to Darcel--he was Darcel now, always was, why had Link thought otherwise?--before the Hylian could fall forward. Kneeling down, Link took hold of his brother’s shoulders and gently leaned him back. Darcel’s head fell against Link’s folded thighs, and warm blood began to soak Link’s pants. 

“Darcel?” Link called in a cracking voice. He could feel tears on his cheeks. He let them fall as he stared down into his brother’s blank gaze. _“Darcel, answer me!”_

Darcel’s eyes shifted and fixed on Link’s face, hovering above him. The red in them was fading to blue. “…Link?”

“Yes.” Link forced a wet, strained smile to his face. Darcel’s hair was darkening to his twin brother’s dirty blonde. He was returning to his old self again. “You’re going to be fine, Darcel. Just wait. Navi. _Navi!”_

Link’s silent companion flew into view and paused to hover before the Hylian’s tear-streaked face. “Navi, please find a fairy for Darcel. Or maybe you can heal him yourself? _Please,_ Navi! Look, he’s come back! We can still save him, and he’ll be the old Darcel again!”

Navi’s wings dipped in grief. There were fewer and fewer fairies in Hyrule nowadays, and none were nearby. She herself didn’t have enough magic to heal the fading Hylian.

Link scrambled for a solution, and he remembered his magic. “Hang on, Darcel,” he said before signing for Farore’s Wind. Nothing happened, and he signed again, and again. Why wasn’t it working? Why couldn’t he--

Sheik’s words came floating back. _Magic is fueled by one’s spirit and inner strength. If those are out of balance, the magic won’t come as easily, or not at all._

“Link…” Darcel’s voice was a mere whisper. “Are we really… descendants… of heroes?”

Link bit back a fresh sob, nodded, and bowed over Darcel to embrace him as best he could. “Yes, yes,” he whispered into Darcel’s ear. “We are. We both are.”

“Mmmm.” Darcel’s body rocked with a spasm. “I’m sorry,” he whispered. “I failed… as a brother. I failed… you.”

Link shook his head against Darcel’s blood-soaked hair. “No, I’m the one who failed you. I should have protected you better.”

“Zelda deserves… you,” Darcel whispered. “You make… a good hero. Not me. I’m… nobody.” His blue eyes swept over the two dragon statues leering down at him and his brother. “I lied, Link. I didn’t… hurt Zelda. I’m sorry.” He blinked away red tears. “Link? It’s all… dark. Link… I can’t see you…”

Link raised his head when he felt his brother grow still within his arms. “Darcel? Darcel?” He shook Darcel’s shoulders. “Darcel, answer me! Darcel? _Darcel?”_

An answer never emerged from Darcel’s cold lips. His blue eyes only stared blankly back when Link looked down at him and tried to rouse him with gentle slaps on his cheeks. Finally, too overcome with grief to continue the fruitless effort, Link bowed over Darcel and sobbed into the young man’s bloodied tunic. His back hitched, and his hands clutched at the body that no longer housed the tortured spirit of his brother. The temple echoed his screams with cold detachment.

#

The sun was sinking towards the horizon, staining the sky orange, yellow, and red. Shade frowned at the show of color. It was getting late. Link should have returned by now. Shade knew the Hylian had left for the temple shortly after noon. He had heard the details when he delivered Mikau’s mangled body to the Zora after discovering it on Lake Hylia’s shore. The Zora were already preparing the body for transport back to Mikau’s native sea. It was a death that weighed heavily on many minds, and Shade was sure it weighed on Link’s even more.

But where _was_ Link? Dead? Too injured to return? The outcomes pulled at Shade while he sat within his saddle on the small island in the middle of Lake Hylia. He had come to the lake to wait for Link and, after retrieving and seeing Mikau’s body to the Zora, he had returned to still find no sign of the Hylian’s emergence from the temple. Hours had passed now, and Shade was beginning to suspect he had seen the last of his apprentice. 

A strong, brief breeze swept over the lake, rippling the water and whispering across the grass on the island. Daze shifted beneath Shade with a soft whinny. Shade soothed her with a gentle word and a pat on the neck, and the horse calmed down. She whinnied a second time a moment later, and before Shade could soothe her, he sensed another disturbance in the air. Winds were gathering over the island. 

As Shade watched from atop his mount, the winds condensed into a pocket of swirling gusts just above the grass; below the dead tree marking the island. An instant later they burst apart, and Shade released a sigh of relief when he saw Link knelt on the grass. 

“There you are, lad,” Shade greeted, and he slid out of his saddle to the ground. “I was beginning to worry--” He stopped, having just now noticed the blood-soaked body lying on the ground. “Is that Darcel?” Shade asked in a gentle voice.

Link didn’t answer. His eyes slid over Shade as if the man was empty air, and he took his shield into hand. 

Shade noted the scarring on the shield’s surface with a troubled knot in his stomach. There were deep dents in the metal, and in some places the paint was scratched off. It had taken heavy damage. “Link, what happened down there?” Shade asked.

“Darcel is dead,” Link said in an expressionless whisper. “I killed him. I didn’t mean to, but the Master Sword had other ideas.” He had taken his shield in both hands, gripping it along its sides. He now raised the shield up and brought it down to strike deep into the ground with its pointed bottom edge. He dragged the shield across the grass, digging up a deep groove before raising the shield and repeating the act.

“What are you doing?” Shade asked as the scent of fresh dirt filled the air, mingling with the smell of stale blood from Darcel’s body.

“I’m digging a grave for my brother,” Link replied, still in the same deadpan whisper. 

“Link, you’re a fool. You can’t do this alone, and with a shield as a shovel. Take up Darcel. We’ll carry him to Kakariko--”

 _“No!”_ Link screamed with such ferocity that Shade took a step back. For a moment, the dull look in Link’s eyes was replaced with furious intensity when he glared over his shoulder at the swordsman. “I am burying my brother here. This place was our haven growing up. That’s why, even at his worst, he chose Lake Hylia--for its purity and openness. It was everything the slums we grew up in weren’t.” Link resumed his work. The shield scraped into the dirt with a rough sound, and Shade winced when he saw the shield’s edges dig into Link’s thin Zora gauntlets. 

“Link, please see reason. The roots of the tree will hinder your efforts.”

“I’ll cut them out of the way.”

“At least bury him on the shore then, if you must lay him to rest at the lake.”

“The ground is too soft on the shore, and it’ll erode with the first hard rain. This island is at Lake Hylia’s heart. I’m burying him here.”

Shade could tell there was something wrong with his apprentice deep down where no physical wound could touch. With no further argument, he swung himself up into his saddle and turned Daze towards the first of the two bridges spanning the lake. “I’ll wait for you on the shore,” he said to Link.

Link simply brought his shield down again to scrape deeper into the ground. 

Shade clicked his tongue, and Daze started forward at a slow walk across the bridge. Upon gaining the shore, Shade turned his mount so that he could continue to watch the island where Link toiled alone. As the sun sank further over the course of the next hour, the shadows deepened, and it soon became almost impossible to discern Link’s form amongst the growing darkness. Soon all sight of him faded entirely.

Shade kept up his vigilance in the light of the lamp that he lit and hung off of the gutter of the abandoned lakeside laboratory. He meant for the light to be a beacon to guide Link back to the shore in the darkness, but Shade didn’t see Link return until the Hylian was almost past him. 

Link was dressed in a black tunic that glistened with dried blood down its back. He nearly blended with the shadows when he walked past Shade without a glance in the swordsman’s direction. 

“Your deed is done?” Shade called after Link, who stopped and half-turned towards Shade. He had abandoned his ruined gauntlets during his work, and the palms of his hands were marred with matching cuts where the shield had opened his skin. The look he fixed on Shade was one of a person spent in nearly all terms. 

“Why are you wearing that tunic, boy?” Shade asked in a hard voice.

“I wasn’t going to bury Darcel in those dark clothes,” Link replied in the deadpan voice he had developed. “I gave him my Zora tunic. He deserves a hero’s clothes more than me.”

Shade narrowed his eyes at the words. “Fine. We’ll get you a fresh change of clothes in the Zora kingdom, as well as a good meal and some rest.”

Link shook his head. “I’m not going back to the Zora kingdom,” he said.

“Would you prefer Kakariko then?”

Again, Link shook his head. He was pulling his shield off of his back. It was stained with dirt on the bottom and blood on the sides. With a careless motion, Link tossed the shield onto the ground. “I’m not going to Kakariko Village either. I’m done.”

“I know you’re done. And now you need some food for strength, and rest to clear your head.”

“You’re not getting it,” Link said. He undid his scabbard and, to Shade’s shock, tossed the entire thing--Master Sword and all--down to the ground. The exposed hilt connected with the shield upon hitting the ground, and a slight clang underlined Link’s next words. “Everything. The training, the battles… _I’m done.”_

Shade slid off of Daze’s back and took a step towards Link. He pointed down at the shield and scabbard on the ground. “Pick those up, boy.”

“I’m done,” Link repeated as if he hadn’t heard Shade. And perhaps he had indeed failed to comprehend the order. His eyes were once again dull and distant; his gaze elsewhere. 

Shade closed the distance to Link and reached out for his wrist. As soon as Shade got a grip on Link, the younger Hylian came to life once more. He jerked his wrist free and disappeared in a gust of Farore’s Wind.


	19. Crossings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> While Zelda and Impa learn of Darcel's death and Link's present state of mind, the hero himself wanders, and Ganondorf inches closer to becoming the person his mothers want him to be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you amazing people for your continued support!
> 
> The Gerudo's weapons are called "bill blades", I believe, but I stuck with "halberd" as it reads less awkwardly.
> 
> Please enjoy, thank you!

# In the Shade of a Hero

### Crossings

When the slam of Vaati’s back hitting the door echoed through the room, the keese nesting on the ceiling scattered in a whirling mass of leathery wings and frightened screeches. Ganondorf’s hand, clenched in the folds of the Wind Mage’s garments, tightened when the Gerudo leaned in to growl, “Tell me one more time.”

Vaati’s hair obscured much of his face, but Ganondorf was able to see the thin lips quirk up into a smile, revealing the hint of a fang between them. Vaati began to chuckle low; his body shook with the act in Ganondorf’s grip. Around the soft sound, the Wind Mage repeated his earlier words, “Dark Link is dead. Link killed him. And now the poor little hero has lost his way.” 

Vaati lifted his head, and a red eye looked up at Ganondorf from behind a thin veil of lilac strands. The expression in the half-obscured gaze was hungry and dangerous. “For the first time, there truly is no one who can stop us. We are free to continue our rule of this world of light and throw it into darkness!”

Ganondorf’s eyes narrowed, and with a snarl he pulled Vaati away from the door. Behind the suspended Wind Mage, a dark portal bloomed to life. Ganondorf glared at Vaati while the magic expanded. “We won’t be doing anything,” the Gerudo snarled. “It will be _I_ who rules this kingdom. _You_ are going to spend the rest of your days in the dungeons until I decide I no longer want you around.”

“You confine me at your own risk,” Vaati hissed. He was no longer laughing. His red eyes now looked crafty, and Ganondorf hesitated for a moment when he saw the look. “Darkness breeds in darkness,” the Wind Mage added with a strange grin.

Ganondorf shoved Vaati into the portal, and ghostly black hands snagged the Wind Mage. “I’ll take my chances.” 

Vaati disappeared with a final laugh as the portal shrank out of sight. 

The ease at which Vaati had accepted imprisonment should have disturbed Ganondorf, but the Gerudo had no time to waste with worrying about it at the moment. His grief threatened to overcome him, but he pushed it aside and called back his keese. They swarmed around the Gerudo’s head in a whirling black mass while he gave his orders. “Find the hero. Find Link. I want to know what he’s up to, where he is, his condition… Anything and everything.”

Like a black ribbon, the keese streamed out of the chamber and through an open window into the spoiled sky. Ganondorf didn’t spare the time to watch them. He was already gathering other creatures for the same task, as well as calling forth the ones who were on the scouting parties for Princess Zelda. None of these latter had anything to report; the princess was still hidden. Ganondorf dismissed these monsters and refreshed the search parties. With this done, he checked his enchanted map that showed the skirmishes across Hyrule. Everything was holding.

There were no more distractions, and unhindered the grief came as a wave that overwhelmed Ganondorf. He sat down under its weight. This was his fault. He had promised to protect Darcel, and he had failed. Instead of keeping him close, he had pushed the boy away and into the influence of another worse than himself. 

“I’m sorry, Link.” Ganondorf dropped his head to the map table and closed his eyes.

“You’ll be sorrier if you don’t nip this problem in the bud right now.”

Ganondorf’s brow furrowed with hatred, and he lifted his head to fix a glare on Koume. She sat on the map table’s edge to his left. Kotake sat on the right. Their faces were mirror images of disappointment and scorn.

“Don’t mourn the boy, Ganondorf,” Kotake picked up from her sister. “He was a pawn. He was destined to fall.”

“You must focus on the other one. His brother.”

“The hero.”

“He’s distracted now. There will be no better time to strike him down.”

“Eliminate him, and no one will stand in our way.”

Ganondorf slammed his fists against the table. _“No!”_ he roared. “I don’t have to have him killed, too!” He paused, and his grief-scrambled mind sought a solution. “Maybe if I talk to him…”

“The hero said the same thing of his brother.”

“And look how that turned out.”

Ganondorf ran his hands through his hair. They encountered the jeweled band adorning his head, and he ripped it off before tossing it across the table.

His mothers sighed as one, and Koume said, “Ganondorf, you must let go of that boy in your heart.”

“Don’t worry, we’ll help you,” Kotake added. She and her sister reached a hand out to Ganondorf, and their palms fell on his shoulders.

Ganondorf gasped, and his fingers hooked around the edge of the table. He sat stiff in his seat and felt twin streams of cold work through his chest, aiming for his heart. What were they doing to him? What was their plan?

_Darkness breeds in darkness._

“No,” Ganondorf croaked. He gripped his shirt over his heart. The muscles in his back and neck were cramping from tension. The cold streams reached the warm pulse in his chest, and he watched the brightest memories of his life come forth to be shrouded in shadow. The kindness he was shown in the castle, and the same kindness he had tried to show in turn. The comforts of a bed and three warm meals, even when the wind blew coldest. And the boys… The twins…

A flash of gold glinted from one of the memories, and Ganondorf latched onto it amidst the darkness. It was a mask. A golden mask in the shape of a sun.

“Gan, look!” Darcel’s voice echoed. He and his brother were running down the road to the castle grounds gate. Darcel was waving the sun mask, and Link had one shaped as the moon. They came to a stop in front of Ganondorf, and they all but scrambled over each other to be the first to tell him of the masks they had made for an upcoming festival. Ganondorf feigned disinterest before startling the boys by pulling out a mask in the visage of a stalchild. They jumped back with twin gasps before breaking into bubbling laughter.

The cold retreated, and Ganondorf’s muscles loosened. He fell forward and only just caught himself from slamming face-first into the table. His breaths came fast and harsh to ruffle the edge of the map.

Koume sneered. “Not a perfect job,” she said with a sniff. “It was unwise to fight us, Ganondorf.” 

“But the suggestion is there,” Kotake reminded her sister. “It will grow on its own now.”

“Yes, you’re right,” Koume said, and with twin cackles she vanished with her sister.

Ganondorf breathed shallowly and carefully. There was a cold knot in his heart now. It tainted every memory he drew up with shadow. And the power in Ganondorf… The Triforce of Power… It relished the cold.

_Do it do it do it do_

It was no longer a question of _if_ Ganondorf would fully give in to his mothers’ terrible designs. Now it was a question of _when._

#

A battered Hylian shield and the sheathed Master Sword were slammed down onto Impa’s kitchen table, and both she and the disguised Princess Zelda jumped in their seats. 

“We have a new trouble to add to the long list,” Shade snapped.

Impa took a moment to collect her breath before she reached out to touch the shield. Her fingers twitched after a second’s rest against the scarred metal. “So much anger,” she murmured. The hand shifted to the embossed scabbard that housed the Master Sword. There, the fingers trembled until she pulled them back down to her lap. “And so much hurt… Link killed his brother, didn’t he?”

“No…” Zelda covered her mouth with a hand, and her eyes glistened. 

Shade nodded once. “And now he’s half out of his mind. You should have seen him, my ladies. The boy’s gone mad.”

“I see,” Impa said. Despite herself, she had returned a hand to the shield, and she was tracing the hints of dirt and blood on its edges. “His spirit is shattered.”

“He’s running around out there armed with only a bow and half a quiver,” Shade continued, more to himself. “That’s not enough if Ganondorf comes calling, and Ganondorf _will_ go after him when he’s so vulnerable--no doubt about that. So let’s get a search party together--”

“Link is beyond any of our help,” Impa cut in. When Shade attempted to argue, Impa overrode him again. “He will not listen to any of us. Not yet. He hasn’t reached bottom yet. But he will very soon. I can sense him somewhat, and I know he’s near the point where he’ll give everything up.”

“Do you mean he’ll turn himself in to Ganondorf? Or flee Hyrule?” Zelda asked. She was clearly unsettled by both possible outcomes. 

Impa shook her head. “No, I mean he will attempt to end everything--his life. But he won’t succeed. Already he is remembering the river in the valley. He doesn’t know it yet, but he will find someone beyond there who will help him: the last Sage. The Sage of Spirit.”

“Nabooru,” Shade murmured, and some of the urgency left his body. “Well, he’ll be in good hands there,” he added. 

“Yes,” Impa agreed. “But his spirit isn’t the only one that needs rest.” She gave Shade a pointed look.

Shade nodded stiffly. “You’re right. It’s late. I’m not use to anyone if I’m too tired to stand. Good night, my ladies.” He bowed in parting, and left Impa’s house with a quieter step then he had upon entering.

Zelda’s face was bowed towards her lap. In the quiet after Shade’s departure, Impa picked up soft crying. She reached a hand out to Zelda’s shoulder, and the princess rushed out of her seat to embrace her nurse. Her sobs came long and hard in Impa’s ear while the Sheikah’s hand rubbed her back.

After a while, words made their way through Zelda’s grief. “I want to go to him,” she said. “You know where he is, don’t you?”

Impa nodded, and Zelda pulled away to take a seat on the edge of the table. She waited there while Impa left the house to secure a pair of borrowed horses. They rode together out of the village and across half of Hyrule to Lake Hylia, guided by lanterns.

Once she and Impa were well along the downhill road to the lake, Zelda began to peel away her Sheikah disguise from her hair and face. Impa caught the act, and she halted her horse to hiss, “What are you doing?”

“I won’t go to him in disguise,” Zelda explained. Her eyes were defiant and their original blue. She had learned enough magic from Impa to change them at will now.

“Fine, fine,” Impa rushed to say. Her hand waved in a plea for calm and silence. “But for the Goddesses’ sakes, let me scout ahead first.” Zelda agreed to this, and Impa spurred her horse ahead while the princess stayed behind. She was gone for more than a quarter hour, and she returned with a grim look.

“Don’t go into the buildings.”

Without Morpha’s influence to hamper it, the lake was already returning to its usual beauty. The bright moon shined, and the water sparkled under its pale light. Despite Impa’s assurance that there was no danger, Zelda kept an eye out for enemies or surprises waiting beyond the ring of her lantern’s light. 

The women reached the waterline without obstruction, and Zelda turned to her nurse in silent question. Impa pointed into the darkness, and the princess slid out of her saddle to take off across the first of Lake Hylia’s two bridges.

There was no marker, but the earth was freshly turned in a rough rectangle. Zelda fell to her knees beside it, put her lantern aside, and reached out to place her hand within one of the larger handprints pressed into the dirt. She could see Link as clearly as if he was beside her. She watched him bury his brother alone, and she felt the dirt fall over Darcel’s still face. Her tears came again, and she let them drop onto the grave.

Impa had reached the island at a slower pace. She knelt down on the opposite side of Darcel’s grave and braced her palms atop her thighs. “I’ll have a headstone placed here,” she promised Zelda, who nodded. “Zelda,” Impa called next. “Neither you nor Link could have stopped this.”

“Are you so sure of that?” Zelda asked in a whisper.

“Unfortunately, yes,” Impa replied. “I knew the moment I saw Darcel after his rescue from the Lost Woods. He was predestined to fall.”

Zelda’s head snapped up, and with wide eyes she cried, _“How could you say such a thing?”_

“Because it’s the truth,” Impa replied in a calmer voice than her charge. “We Sheikah do not lie.”

“Well I wish you did!” Zelda snapped.

“I know,” Impa said, and a tear fell from her stern eyes. “Me too.” She bowed her head, and Zelda saw the tremble of grief in her narrow shoulders. “Goddesses, how I wish we could sometimes.”

“Impa…”

“They were like sons to me,” Impa continued. “Just as you’re like a daughter to me. We Sheikah who place ourselves so close to the Royal Family… We’re not allowed to marry, nor have children. We can’t allow for distractions like that. But those boys…” She laughed a little, wetly. “I was so lucky to have the three of you. But I didn’t deserve you.” Her tone hardened, and her hands clenched against her thighs. “I failed in my duty to protect the king, and to protect you, my princess. I have brought shame to my tribe.”

It was Impa’s turn to be comforted. Zelda circled Darcel’s grave and knelt down to wrap her arm around her nurse’s shoulders. “No, Impa. You didn’t fail,” Zelda assured her nurse. “Three of us are still here. Link and I are still here, and Darcel is here in spirit. And as long as we don’t forget one another, we’ll always be here.”

Impa wiped away a tear and sniffed. “You speak the truth,” she said. “You make for a good Sheikah.” She dropped a hand to the fresh earth, and Zelda did the same. They could feel the waning warmth it in from the sun that had set hours ago. By chance, they both spoke the same parting words.

 _“Farawelta forvuwinda.”_

#

Darcel was strangling Link.

No, it wasn’t Darcel. It was Dark Link now. 

Or maybe Vaati. 

Ganondorf?

The watery doppelganger?

This last materialized as the truth. Link heard the laugh like breaking ice in his head. He felt cold, wet fingers cover his mouth and nose. Water slid in through his nostrils and flooded his windpipe. 

“Breathe,” a voice whispered. 

Link sucked in a deep breath. Only water filled his lungs. Its coldness spread through his body, freezing his limbs and confusing his mind as it tried to understand why he would so willingly do such a thing to himself. 

Link took another breath, and he plummeted through water that surrounded him on all sides. He was one with the element. It churned within him, choking out his life, while it also pressed on his body with its unyielding weight. Link closed his eyes as he sunk into the darker depths.

A burst of music buoyed Link back up from below. It was a low, haunting tune. Link opened his eyes to search for its source, and he found himself standing on solid white stone--Lord Jabu-Jabu’s altar. The whale-like guardian floated in its fountain before Link. It didn’t speak--not in any audible language that Link understood--but words filled the Hylian’s head while he stared up at the massive god. 

_Descendant of the ancient hero, you have lost your way._

“There is nowhere for me to go,” Link returned in a low murmur. “Only onward towards death.”

_Do not give in to dark temptations._

“I want to see my brother again.”

_Are you so selfish as to give yourself over to death and leave this world to die in its own way?_

“This world deserves a better hero.”

_You can be that hero again._

“I was never that hero in the first place.”

_You are wrong._

_“No!”_ Link finally shattered his detached demeanor with a furious shout and a stomp of a boot against the wet stone. “You and everyone else who thinks I’m a hero are the ones who are wrong! I’m not made for this! I never wanted this! I just… I just…” 

He dropped to his knees and covered his face with his hands. Soft sobs hitched their way around his muffled words. “I just wanted to have a little ranch. I just wanted to spend my days in the sun, maybe marry and have a kid or two… _I never wanted to be a hero!”_ Link bent over and slammed his fists down against the stone. 

_The Goddess Farore chose you._

“Damn her then,” Link hissed at the stone.

The world fell away, and Link felt his body jerk in his bed. He opened his eyes onto the humble construction of Lon Lon Ranch’s guest room. It was a dream. Or was it? He didn’t know. He didn’t care. He closed his eyes again.

Link’s ears twitched when they caught a thread of Malon’s voice from downstairs. He rolled out of bed in a swift, silent movement and walked to the door. There, he pressed an ear against the crack between door and frame, and closed his eyes to focus on the voice.

“…four days ago and slept for a day straight. He’s been working ever since, sleeping erratically for a few hours here or there. It’s a disturbed sleep. I hear him toss and turn, and he talks or sometimes even cries. He has no appetite either. He keeps refusing food. He only drinks when he’s working.”

“Is he sleeping now?” asked a second voice, and Link’s gut clenched when he recognized it as Shade’s. 

Without waiting to hear Malon’s reply, Link turned and collected his boots in haste. Getting dressed was unnecessary; he hadn’t yet removed his brother’s old clothes. Link slipped on his boots and tied them with swift, practiced motions. A similar pair of boots began to make their way up the stairs just as he finished. Hearing them, Link at once made for the window. 

“Navi, come,” Link whispered, and the fairy flew off of a shelf and down into his collar. Link didn’t waste time with collecting his bow and quiver, nor did he bother to shut the window after he clambered his way out of it. 

The way down was a straight drop with no handholds, so Link climbed upward onto the roof of the farmhouse, using the skills he had learned from Impa. Once he was on the relatively flat top, he ran. The gutter at the front of the house would help him down. As he sprinted, he left a trail of heavy boot-falls behind him.

 _“Link!”_

That was Shade’s voice, low in anger, but with concern lacing the single syllable. He continued to call Link’s name as he followed the Hylian’s path onto the roof. 

Shade was closer than Link thought, and the younger Hylian tried a backup plan. He cast Farore’s Wind as he ran, but his spent body and lack of focus were making things difficult. He kept feeling the magic pull at his body onto to die away a second later before it could finish the job. Again and again Link signed for the spell. The edge of the roof was growing closer, as were Shade’s shouts. Link had to make a decision--leap, or climb down? 

He made a leap out into the open air. The ground was twenty feet below him. He closed his eyes against the sight of it rushing towards him, and tried one final time to cast his teleportation magic.

There was a split second of weightlessness before Link’s head connected with a rock, and he fell into darkness.

#

_Seek the river in the valley._

Link opened his eyes onto a glaring sun. He winced and turned his head away from it. Before his eyes spread a wide expanse of naked, brown rock. That same rock pressed against his splayed body, and a sharp chunk of it dug into his skull. Link sat up and lifted a hand to the bleeding wound in his head. It was shallow and already crusting over. He dropped his hand and took a moment to study the bandages wrapped around his palms. 

Because of the work Link had forced himself to do the past half-week, the cuts in his palms weren’t healing. The foothold the skin managed to gain during sleep was swept aside with each shovel or plow Link had grasped. He unwound one loosening bandage to find the skin puckered and white around the wound. There was a faint odor coming off of it as well. Link studied the signs of infection with a detached eye and wound the bandage back around his palm.

After standing up and studying the high cliffs around him, Link recognized his surroundings. Although he had never set foot in it, his magic had brought him to the Gerudo Valley. This was the land where Ganondorf hailed from. That meant there were people here--no doubt further in the valley where the Zora River cut its path through the stone. 

_Seek--_

“The river in the valley,” Link said aloud, finishing the stray thought floating through his head. He turned his tired feet westward and walked.

The sun was sinking below the high cliffs when Link arrived to a deep canyon. At the bottom of the canyon flowed the Zora River. There was only a single, open-sided wooden bridge spanning the way across the canyon, and on the opposite side stood two red haired, dark-skinned women on guard. They were members of the Gerudo tribe. 

Link had occasionally seen a Gerudo in Hyrule Town when he was growing up. He was always warned to stay away from the women because they had an appetite for handsome young men. Now Link stepped onto the bridge and began to make his way across it with no hesitation. He was too engrossed in his thoughts to notice the guards tense and ready their halberds.

“Halt, Hylian,” the Gerudo on the left ordered when Link was almost halfway across the bridge. 

Link stumbled to a stop and regarded the two women with tired confusion. He was weary from his flight from Lon Lon Ranch, the effort he had put into his teleportation magic, and the long walk to this bridge. He swayed on his feet and tried to fight the temptation to drop out of exhaustion.

The left Gerudo continued to speak her warning. “If you take one more step, you will be in Gerudo territory, and no Hylian may pass into our lands without permission. Disregard for this rule will only bring you death.”

Link smacked his dry lips together to collect enough moisture to speak into the arid air. “I seek the one beyond the river in the valley who can help me.”

The two guards exchanged confused glances between each other, and the Gerudo on the right said, “There is nothing for you beyond here, Hylian. These lands are unforgiving. Go back to your own green fields and treasure them for as long as you can before Ganondorf spreads his evil there.”

“Please--” Link made to take a step forward only to stagger back two steps when the Gerudo women raised their weapons. His eyes slipped away from the glinting blades when he was reminded of his own sword slicing through Darcel. The blue gaze latched onto the water far below, and Link turned his body towards the edge of the bridge. 

“What are you doing?” one of the Gerudo called to Link when he moved the toes of his boots to the edge of the bridge. It swayed beneath him, matching the movements of his own swaying body. 

“I can’t go any further,” Link said. “I tried, but I can’t. I’m done.”

“Don’t jump, you fool!” the other Gerudo shouted. “The water is shallower than it looks! Falling from this height--” Her words cut off into a scream when Link tipped his body over the edge of the bridge.

#

Nabooru had taken to queenhood easily. She had grown up with Ganondorf, after all, and had absorbed his training alongside him. They were friends, of a sort, and everyone thought they would marry once Ganondorf was officially crowned as king of the Gerudo.

But Ganondorf’s mothers intervened, and the war had started, and Nabooru learned her role in it all. Years after the war’s end, the knowledge she carried still weighed on her; more so now with Ganondorf in the Hyrulean throne. Things were coming to a head, and she could feel that this day in particular would bring change.

Ashlin lifted her head from between Nabooru’s thighs and straightened onto her knees. Her hands on the queen’s ankles drew Nabooru’s attention. “You called me here for a distraction, but you’re already distracted.”

Nabooru winced and sat up. “I know. I’m sorry.” 

“What is it?” Ashlin asked. 

Nabooru shook her head and sealed away future questions behind a kiss. Her body was tense, and Ashlin’s hands roved over the tight muscles in hopes to relax them. A commotion outside Nabooru’s chambers halted them, and the women separated with a shared sigh.

“What’s going on now?” Nabooru wondered aloud. In the back of her mind, she hoped that this was it; this was what she had waited for all these years. It was unusual for the disciplined Gerudo to get so worked up. Something significant had happened.

After dismissing Ashlin, Nabooru dressed and followed the noise to her receiving chamber. There she found a group of six guards waiting for her. Suspended between four of the women on a stretch of canvas was a young man in black clothes. He was soaked to the bone and looked malnourished. Bandages covered his hands, there was a shallow cut in his head beneath his blonde hair, and he was as pale as a fish’s belly. In short, he looked quite dead, but when Nabooru pushed back an eyelid she found a bright blue eye that still shined with some life. 

“Who is this?” Nabooru asked. 

The other two guards stepped forward to tell their tale of the young Hylian who had tried to cross over to the Gerudo lands. They relayed his strange words and actions, ending in the sudden plummet to the Zora River. 

“By all accounts he should be dead,” one of the Gerudo guards remarked. “But when we fished his body out of the river where it had caught on the shore, we found him still breathing and remarkably whole.”

“The Goddesses must be looking out for him,” remarked another guard.

Nabooru was studying the young man while she listened to the account. When she ran her hands over his cheek, a white ball of light emerged from his collar and settled upon the front of his wet tunic. “A fairy? Wait, could it be…” 

Nabooru reached for the young man’s bandaged left hand, and she felt something stir beneath her fingers. A sudden image entered her head, and in a tight voice she said, “Send a messenger for Shade. Immediately. This is Link. This is the one who will save Hyrule.”

A guard rushed out of the chamber to fulfill Nabooru’s wish. She, meanwhile, studied Link a little more. Her hand fell against his cold cheek, and she listened to his labored breaths with a heavy heart. “You kept me waiting, Link, but you were smart to find me here. I know you feel lost, but you’re not. Your spirit is shattered, but the pieces are still there. We’ll help you to put them back together--stronger than they were before.” 

To her fellow Gerudo, Nabooru said, “Get Link to a room. Make him comfortable, and treat his wounds. I want a guard on him at all hours--he is to not leave this fortress until I’ve spoken to him. Is that understood?”

“What about the fairy?”

“She stays with him. Hurry now, do as I say!”

The guards fell to their orders, and Nabooru stepped away to allow the women room to carry out the tasks. The makeshift gurney was hoisted up, and Link was carried out of the room. 

#

Link was still recovering when Nabooru made her way to the borders of her land two days later to meet Shade. She went alone, which wasn’t unusual for her. She was strangely solitary for a Gerudo. However, it wasn’t just her nature that was the reason behind the lone outing. The things she and Shade had to discuss were best left to only their ears. 

Shade was seated atop Daze on the green grass of Hyrule Field, which ended abruptly at the rocky edge of the Gerudo lands. The horse neighed upon seeing Nabooru, and with a smile on her face Nabooru hurried over to pet the mare. 

Daze stretched her neck out over the border between Hyrule and the valley, and Nabooru’s hand passed through the horse’s nose. 

This didn’t surprise Nabooru. She murmured, “Oh, I’m sorry girl,” before she moved out onto the grass. Daze’s head followed Nabooru, and this time when the Gerudo’s hand fell against the horse’s head, it was as solid as it appeared. “That’s a good Daisy,” Nabooru praised.

“Daze,” Shade corrected shortly.

Nabooru smiled against Daze’s velvety snout and suppressed a laugh.

“So he’s alive?” Shade prompted.

Nabooru lifted her head, but kept one hand on Daze, stroking idly. “Yes,” she assured the swordsman with a nod. “He’s alive--even after a plummet from the bridge. To say he’s troubled would be an understatement. He sleeps now, but I can tell it is not a peaceful rest. His wounds are healing and physically he is fine. Spiritually, however…”

“Ah, but that’s your area of expertise,” Shade said with a smile. The expression soon faded into a sad, contemplative look. “You know I can’t follow Link into your lands. I’m going to trust him to you, Nabooru. Please take care of him, and please help him. I’ll give you as much time as you need.”

“No deadline?” Nabooru asked, and Shade shook his head. Nabooru smiled again. “He’s grown on you, hasn’t he? Wait until Saria hears this…”

“You’ll keep your mouth shut,” Shade warned, and Nabooru snickered. “Yes, he’s grown on me,” Shade admitted the next moment. “I want him to be a survivor, not a martyr or a casualty. But I worry. He’s still only a child in so many ways…”

“I’ll strengthen him,” Nabooru promised. “I’ll help him to remember who he is, where he comes from, and what is expected of him. He’ll stop thinking of his destiny as a burden and start seeing it as an honor.”

“Thank you,” Shade said with a grateful nod of his head. He reached behind him to where a battered Hylian shield and the sheathed Master Sword were lashed onto the saddle. After untying them, he passed them down to Nabooru. “He’ll need these. He might refuse them, however.”

“Not once I’m done with him,” Nabooru said. She shouldered the shield and took hold of the Master Sword in both hands, holding it with reverent care. “I’ll send along another messenger when he’s ready. I don’t think it will take long. He’s a strong young man in many ways--I can see that already. Farore picked well.”

“This time,” Shade muttered in a tight voice.

Nabooru caught his words, but she didn’t address them. “I should get going,” she said instead. “Take care, Shade.” With a smile, Nabooru parted from the swordsman and hurried off; back to the Gerudo Valley, and the fortress within it.


	20. At the Fortress

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Link recovers at the Gerudo's fortress before going on a spiritual journey.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for your continued support! All of you are awesome.
> 
> We're all in agreement that Nabooru was promising young Link sex when she first met him in _Ocarina of Time,_ yes?
> 
> Please enjoy, thank you!

# In the Shade of a Hero

### At the Fortress

After the long walk from the edge of her land to the Gerudo Fortress--carrying a heavy shield and sword to boot--Nabooru was in need of a cool drink. She first saw to the proper storage of the shield and the Master Sword before she sat herself down at a wooden table with a cup of water. Her thoughts lingered on various things--namely the would-be hero now resting within her walls. Lost in her thoughts, Nabooru failed to notice one of her guards come into the small kitchen until the woman entered her field of vision.

“I’m sorry, my queen,” the guard apologized when Nabooru started in her chair. “But I wanted to inform you right away that Link is awake. He hasn’t attempted to leave yet, via magic or otherwise, but it’s as if he’s in a state of living death. He is awake, but he appears unaware, and we can’t get any words or actions from him.”

Nabooru finished off her drink and stood up. “Take me to him. I’ll speak with him alone.”

The guard led Nabooru to a bedroom where Link was taken two days prior. Two guards flanked the entrance to it. On Nabooru’s order they left the area along with the third guard. 

Link was lying in the simple bed within the room. His wet, dirty clothes were gone, but he was covered in a light sheet--more for modesty’s sake than to keep away any cold. He didn’t look at Nabooru when she walked into the room. His eyes remained fixed on the low ceiling; their light was dull. Navi was keeping silent vigilance from a nearby table. She shyly flitted away when Nabooru walked up to Link’s bedside.

“Hello, boy,” Nabooru greeted. 

Link gave no acknowledgement.

Nabooru was hardly one to give up just because someone was being stubborn. She had experience in getting what she wanted--whether through thievery or other means. She climbed up on top of Link, straddling his waist so that he was forced to notice her. When he continued to only stare up with his blank expression, Nabooru bent over and pressed her lips against his mouth.

Link gasped in surprise, and his eyes focused. With enough effort on Nabooru’s part, some life began to come back to him, and not just in his gaze. The Gerudo queen’s hand worked on him through the sheet while her lips coaxed more and more of a response out of the Hylian. He breathed hard and fast between kisses while his hands marked Nabooru’s lines, and hers threaded through his hair. With a final, hitched curse, he came, and Nabooru kissed away the last of his ragged breaths. 

Nabooru slid back some, and Link sat up and blinked rapidly. His eyes were a little clearer now, and he looked to Nabooru with a look of surprise, relief, and question.

“Welcome back to the real world,” Nabooru greeted with a brief smile. She straightened up and used the sheet to clean Link off before sliding out of the bed. “Now tell me why you’re here, boy.”

Moving slowly, Link swung his legs over the edge of the bed. He bundled the sheet around his waist and dropped his gaze from Nabooru’s penetrating eyes. “I’m looking for the one across the river in the valley who can help me.”

“Who sent you?” Nabooru asked next.

“Lord Jabu-Jabu,” Link replied. “He told me to make my way here when I felt as if I couldn’t go on.”

“Well, he was right. Your spirit is fading,” Nabooru observed. “You have no will to continue along the path on which you’ve been set.”

“I never asked for this path,” Link said in bitter tone.

“No one ever does,” Nabooru retorted. “And many falter on their journey down their paths. Are you going to allow yourself to be one of them?”

After a lengthy pause, Link murmured something. Nabooru didn’t hear him, so she leaned in and demanded him to repeat his words in a louder voice. 

Link lifted his head and said in a stronger tone, “I want to save Hyrule.”

“No, you don’t,” Nabooru snapped.

Link jerked, startled by the Gerudo’s tone. His blue eyes widened for a moment before he bowed his head in shame.

Nabooru carried on, “If you wanted to save Hyrule, you would not be here! You would not have leapt off of a bridge in hopes of escaping your destiny! You are a child who thinks he can forget his duty, or pass it on to someone else. But no one else is going to save Hyrule, Link! This task was put to you, and you are attempting to discard it!”

Link didn’t say anything to either agree or contradict with Nabooru’s accusations, but the Gerudo saw the Hylian’s brow and jaw trembling with suppressed emotions. Nabooru knew Link was having difficulties. She knew he needed help and possibly reassurance that everything was going to turn out all right. But she also knew there was no promise of that, and that Link had to get strong again if he was to save Hyrule. 

“You have trained your body to suit your needs,” Nabooru spoke up, and Link raised his troubled gaze to look at her. “But now you have to strengthen your spirit.” She smiled faintly. “And a clean spirit starts with a clean body. Get up off that bed, Link. I’m sending you to the baths, and then you’re going to put some food and water down that throat of yours, or I’ll have my girls force-feed you.”

“Lovely ladies holding me down and tending to my needs? I’m okay with that,” Link said with some life in his eyes.

Nabooru laughed lightly and tugged Link onto his feet. He scrambled to keep his sheet around his waist, and Nabooru laughed again. “You’re a rare creature in this desert, Link, so I suggest you keep a close eye on your surroundings.”

“Hyrule isn’t lost yet if the worse thing I have to worry about is being seduced by a lovely woman of the desert.”

“If you can joke around, you must be getting better already. Come on, let’s get you cleaned up.”

#

In the heat of the desert, the baths were a cool sanctuary. Carved into the rock face far from the warm sun, the water sat in shallow pools that reflected like mirrors. For many minutes after washing, Link sat on the edge of a pool in the waist-high water and stared down at his reflection on the smooth surface. 

His image surprised him; he looked so old. Perhaps it was the light of the cavern and the faint ripples in the water, but he looked haggard, run down, and not at all like a hero. His eyes were dull, and the right eye had a strange flatness to its appearance. The memory of his promised sacrifice played at the back of Link’s mind while he studied the rest of his face. His hair was damp from his bath, and darkened by the water, but even so it managed to look faded. Dark bags lay against the underside of his eyes, and his skin looked too pale.

A shadow appeared over the water, throwing Link’s reflection into darkness. He turned his head to look back and found Nabooru standing behind him. She crouched down on bent knees, balancing lightly on the balls of her feet so as to speak to Link at his current eyelevel. 

“You look troubled,” the Gerudo queen remarked.

Link turned his eyes to the side and shook his head once. “I’m just thinking.” He glanced down at the water surrounding him. “The water reminds me of Darcel. The last time I saw him alive was in the Zora’s temple. I killed him there. I… _murdered_ my own brother.” Link closed his eyes and attempted a smile, but it came out more as a grimace. “The ironic thing is I knew it was going to happen. Nayru had forewarned me. So why… Why was I so stupid to fall into that trap?”

“It wasn’t a trap,” Nabooru said with a shake of her head. “The Goddesses were testing you. You only did what had to be done. If you hadn’t stopped Darcel, he would have killed you instead. And then he would have helped Ganondorf to conquer what remains of Hyrule.”

“He was my brother at the very end,” Link said in a cracking voice. “When he was dying in my arms… He was Darcel. He had come back. There was no darkness in him anymore.”

“The Master Sword cleaves darkness,” Nabooru reminded Link. “It destroyed the evil that was in Darcel. Unfortunately, that darkness was so much a part of your brother, he had forgotten how to live without it, and so he couldn’t be saved.”

A long silence stretched between Nabooru and Link before the latter finally spoke up again. “And Ganondorf. I’ll have to kill him too, won’t I? He’s steeped in more darkness than Darcel was, and he willingly took up that mantle. He threatens Hyrule’s future. But…” Link bowed his head and sighed. “I keep remembering the man who looked after Darcel and me after our father died. He always snuck us into the castle during the rare occasions we weren’t allowed in--when ceremonies and foreign guests were the focus of the castle staff. He showed us a glimpse of the strong men we could become if we worked hard. And even though his influence on Darcel was far from ideal, he still took my brother under his wing and taught him to be strong, in a way.”

Nabooru reached out and placed a hand on Link’s cool, bare shoulder. “And now it’s your turn to become strong,” she said. “So that you can right the wrong that your once-friend has caused. Perhaps, with luck, Ganondorf will see some light at the end as well--just like Darcel did.”

“Please don’t try to put a positive spin on murder,” Link begged, and Nabooru’s hand flinched away from his shoulder. “I can barely accept what I have to do as it is, but I don’t want to belittle its meaning anymore and turn it into something it’s not just to be able to get over it. If I have to kill Ganondorf to save Hyrule, I’ll do it, and I’ll accept the repercussions even if they destroy me too.”

Nabooru straightened up without saying a word and left the pool. She returned a few minutes later with a fresh change of clothes for Link--Gerudo in design. “They were Ganondorf’s,” she revealed, and Link’s eyebrows shot up for a moment. “We took a guess on the alterations.”

The clothes suited Link well enough to make do, and once he was dressed Nabooru indicated he should follow her to the kitchen for a much-needed meal. 

#

The keese fluttered weakly in Ganondorf’s hands while the Gerudo watched its memories through a mental connection he had established.

_“I still remember the man who looked after Darcel and me after our father died.”_

“You were always the gentler of you two, lad,” Ganondorf muttered in a tone of disappointment while the memory played on in his head. “It’s going to be a shame if I have to strike you down. You’re ignorant to what you’re getting into, and it may well be your end.” 

Ganondorf’s hand tightened and the last of the life in the keese died away, leaving the creature to dissipate into a curl of dark magic. But one final flash stuck in Ganondorf’s mind as the image of Link and Nabooru faded away.

_“If I have to kill Ganondorf to save Hyrule, I’ll do it…”_

“What?” Ganondorf tried to call back the keese’s life, but it was already gone, and with it the rest of Link’s words. Had he heard right? No. Link would give him a chance to explain things. He had to. He owed Ganondorf that much--

 _What does he owe you?_ Koume questioned in Ganondorf’s ear. 

_About as much as you owe him,_ Kotake added with a snicker.

“Go away,” Ganondorf growled.

 _He’s probably very happy with you for Darcel’s death,_ Koume taunted.

 _So happy, he’ll want to return the favor,_ Kotake whispered.

_Unless you stop him first._

_Unless you_ kill _him first._

The witches cackled in Ganondorf’s head, and he pressed a palm to his brow. “He can be reasoned with,” Ganondorf tried again to argue. “He’s not his brother.”

_Exactly our point._

_He’s not with you._

_He’s acting against you, in fact._

_Go on. Go to the fortress._

_You’ll see the truth of it all._

_And maybe you’ll have the guts to end it all._

The voices faded with final snatches of laughter, and Ganondorf dropped his hand. He could… at least go see with his own eyes. He could do that much. And if Link was still on the wrong path, it would be his job to show the boy the error of his ways, just as he did whenever Link was wrong in his youth.

#

Link covered his nose and mouth with one hand and grimaced. Pungent oils and incenses assaulted his nose in a mixture of bitter, sweet, and heady odors. “Is this absolutely necessary?” he asked from behind his hand. 

To Link’s left, Nabooru hushed him with a slight frown and nodded to the Gerudo Elder in the room. Like Link, this Gerudo woman was seated with legs crossed on a large mat that covered the floor of the dark room--a spiritual chamber, as Nabooru had called it. Candlelight highlighted the aged lines on the unnamed Gerudo Elder’s ancient face, and her thin body was veiled in a robe of purples and blues. Her hair had lost the deep red that was typical to the Gerudo tribe; it was now a striking grayish-white, and it fell to her shoulders in straggly locks. 

The Gerudo Elder stretched out a skeletal hand and waved it over the small fire pit between her and Link. “Your dreams have been troubling you, child,” she said in a strong voice that didn’t fit her small frame.

Link nodded. His dreams had started to take stranger and stranger turns, even before his unfortunate encounter with Darcel. “Yes,” Link said aloud. “My friends come and go in them, often without cause and in violent means, and afterwards I’m always in a new place, although I have no idea how I came to it.”

“You wander,” the Gerudo Elder simplified. “You gain friends and lose them in these wanderings. These are your fears, child. You fear that you are too far removed from your world because of your destiny and what it requires. You fear what you must do--what terrible things it will entail, and how it will affect you. You fear you will never be the same--never be accepted as a hero--even if you succeed in your tasks.” 

The Gerudo Elder passed her hand quickly through the flames and summarized, “You have no faith--not in yourself, not in the Goddesses’ plans, and not in those that support you. You think they will abandon you, or that you will fail them.”

Nabooru’s hand found Link’s for a moment and squeezed. When he looked to her, she cast him a look that promised she would never do what he feared. Link bowed his head with a murmured apology.

“Because of this lack of faith, your spirit wavers,” the Gerudo Elder continued. “To steady its resolve, you must be reminded of what is at stake.” Her voice rose with each sentence uttered from her wrinkled mouth. “You are the only one who has any hope of defeating the dark man that originated from this desert. Stop remembering the man from your youth. Start seeing him as the enemy he is--the enemy not only to Hyrule, but to you and everyone you care about.” The Gerudo Elder’s voice reached a fever pitch. “He will _kill_ you, child, if you do not kill him first! Then there will be no one to save this land! _By hesitating, you condemn us all!”_

Link said nothing. He knew the Gerudo Elder’s words were true. She was echoing the very thoughts in his mind and spirit. He was ashamed by how easy it was for her to read him, and he closed his eyes against the harsh truths. 

The Gerudo Elder sighed faintly. “You must put aside your fears and see things as they truly are.”

“How can I do that?” Link asked in a whisper.

As if waiting for this question, Nabooru maneuvered herself to kneel in front of Link, and she lifted his head with a touch to his chin. She now faced him with her back to the fire and the Gerudo Elder. “I’ll help you,” Nabooru said. “You’re going to go on a little spiritual journey.” 

She reached out and placed a hand on each of Link’s shoulders. Her grip was light and warm; Link remembered it well, and he flushed. 

Nabooru pretended not to notice. “Close your eyes, Link,” she instructed. “Relax, breathe deep, and empty your mind. You will see where you must go to confront the truth of things as they stand.”

Link did as he was instructed, although he doubted such a simple task would give him any answers. He closed his eyes against the dark room and breathed in the oils and incenses clouding the air. He coughed once, suppressed a second cough, and relaxed in an effort to empty his mind. This was more difficult than he expected. Thoughts kept pushing their way to the front of his mind, and the heady scents in the air made him feel lightheaded. He wavered in his seat, swaying back and forth as if he was about to faint, and he coughed again--

He saw eyes--blank, stone eyes staring down at him in a formidable expression. Winding passages, effigies of snakes, a mirror--

The images jerked and tore, and Link saw Sheik standing inches away. His red eyes went wide with surprise before smoothing out with his smile. The surroundings were as hard and pristine as ice, but the ground was as soft as down when Link and Sheik fell atop it, mouths and hips pressed together.

“Link.”

That was Zelda’s voice, and Link pushed himself up with a gasp; the sound echoed in the blank space. He stared down at her with his left hand braced against the ground, his right hand around the swell of her breast, and Sheik’s hardness against his thigh.

“I’m sorry to interrupt,” Zelda said with a smile. “I was praying for you, and I guess our spirits touched.”

“Zelda, I’m sorry--” Link was cut off by Zelda’s finger on his lips. It was cool to the touch--unlike his face, which felt like a burning sun. 

“You’re really confused right now, aren’t you?” Zelda asked, and Link nodded. “It’s okay. Let me simplify things a little. I know about you and Sheik, and I’m fine with it all. There. Is that better?”

Link nodded again. He was still confused by what he was seeing and feeling, but Zelda’s forgiveness had lifted a weight off of his shoulders. He was able to still his flailing thoughts and focus on her words.

“Now I want to apologize,” Zelda continued, and her hands reached up to caress Link’s cheeks. “I’m sorry I wasn’t there when you needed support. I’m sorry I wasn’t with you when Darcel died. But it’s almost over, Link. You’re almost there. And once you’ve strengthened your spirit a little more, I’ll be waiting for you.”

“You mean--?”

“Yes. Now it’s time for you to go back to Nabooru.”

Link’s face flushed anew. “Zelda, she… I mean, I think Nabooru was only trying to help, but…”

Zelda chuckled. “My, aren’t you popular!” she remarked, and Link had to laugh a little. “Link, you can share the bed of every man and woman in Hyrule if you want because I know you’re still mine at the end of it all.”

“I’m yours,” Link echoed. They kissed, and when Link pulled away it was to find the Gerudo Elder’s dark, stuffy room pressing in on him. He gasped and at once sucked in breath after breath. He felt as if he had run a marathon. His chest ached, and he was coated in sweat; his borrowed clothes were damp with it. The candles in the room were down to half of what they were when he closed his eyes.

“You’ve finally returned,” the Gerudo Elder said. 

Nabooru’s hands left Link’s shoulders, and she moved back to her seat with a faint groan. She looked tired, and her limbs moved stiffly. 

“I…” Link faltered. It had felt like only minutes, but clearly he was lost in some sort of trance for an hour or longer.

“You spoke in the midst of your journey,” the Gerudo Elder picked up. 

“About Zelda and Sheik?” Link guessed.

Nabooru shook her head and frowned. “No. Did you see them?”

“I… Yeah,” Link answered with reddening cheeks.

“We heard nothing of them, which means they have no bearing on your spirit’s current, disorderly state,” the Gerudo Elder said. “However, you spoke much of the desert, and the temple that lies in the midst of it. A mirror, too. From this, I can conclude that you are to reflect upon yourself at the Spirit Temple. Perhaps there you will find something to aid both your spirit and your quest.”

“A temple in the desert?” Link repeated with a frown. 

“You must make the trip alone,” the Gerudo Elder added. 

“But I don’t know anything about a temple in the desert,” Link said. “How can I speak of something I don’t know? How can I find a place I’ve never been to?”

Nabooru was standing up, and she tugged on Link’s upper arm to encourage him to do the same. Link cut off his protests and stood up. Before leaving, he offered the Gerudo Elder a bow in parting. Nabooru led Link out of the chamber, through several halls that gradually grew lighter with torchlight and sunlight, and finally into an empty kitchen where she indicated Link should sit. 

Link took his seat at a table, and Nabooru leaned her back against the wall. Her arms were crossed over her chest, and she tapped a finger against an elbow in deep thought. After a minute’s silence, Link cleared his throat and asked, “Do I have to do as the Elder says?”

Nabooru raised her head with an almost startled expression. “Oh yes, of course you do. It ties into both your spirit’s growth and your destiny. Otherwise you wouldn’t have had the vision.”

Link scratched at his head idly. “So what do I do?” he asked.

“You will have to go into the desert alone and seek the Spirit Temple that lies within it. The way is dangerous even for experienced travelers, for the desert was cursed generations ago with unending sandstorms that obscure the path.” Nabooru stretched out a hand and made a line through the air with her delicate fingers. “There are flags posted in a trail through the desert, but now no one can see them unless they’re right on top of them. And there are ghosts.”

“Ghosts?” Link repeated uneasily.

Nabooru nodded her head once in a grave expression. “The desert is a magnet now for spirits, demons, and ghosts due to the dark energy that lingers there. They like to mislead travelers by guiding them to the middle of the storms where they die from starvation, dehydration, or hypothermia once night falls. However, therein lies the catch, for the only sure way through the storms is to follow a friendly spirit.”

“And how do I tell a friendly spirit from an evil one?” Link asked.

Nabooru shrugged her shoulders. “That’s something you have to ask yourself when the time comes. Only you will be able to tell what ghost or spirit might be friendly to you. Just don’t allow yourself to be tricked. Now…” 

Nabooru walked over to the table and took a seat opposite Link. “This is what I can tell you about getting through the desert. One, keep a level head. Don’t rush, and just keep walking as straight as you can. With luck, you’ll come across an old fort--it goes underground. You can rest there overnight. Build a fire to keep back the cold. If no spirit comes to guide you, try to follow the flags yourself. They’ll lead you to the Spirit Temple. But if you can find the right ghost guide, that task will be easy.”

“And what if I can’t find the flags?” Link asked. “Or what if a ghost leads me astray?”

Nabooru didn’t answer either of Link’s questions. “I can’t help you anymore than that,” she said instead. “This is your task, Link. It’s your job to see what lays waiting for you at the Spirit Temple. Find the faith in yourself to make the journey, faith in the Goddesses to trust your destiny to them, and faith in me that my words will help you to make the trip safely. Only then will your spirit strengthen again.”

_You have no faith…_

Link set his jaw and nodded once. “All right,” he said. “I’ll put my faith where it belongs. I’ll trust you, myself, and the Goddesses.”


	21. Beyond the Wasteland

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Link sets off to the Spirit Temple, and Ganondorf follows.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for your continued support!
> 
> I skip a lot of the Spirit Temple's details for this chapter because most of its aspects were game-oriented, and to keep things moving.
> 
> Feedback and kudos are awesome. Please enjoy, thank you!

# In the Shade of a Hero

### Beyond the Wasteland

A shadow passed over Link while he stood on the edge of the desert, where far out across the barren land a sandstorm obscured the horizon in a brown cloud. He turned his eyes up from this view and marked a lone bird circling above him. The sun was in his eyes, so the bird appeared as a dark outline. For one fearful moment he thought it was a vulture. Were they starting to circle already, as if sensing the suicide mission he was about to undertake? But no, the wing shape was wrong. Oddly, it looked more like an owl--a very large one at that.

“Where have I seen you before?” Link murmured while he studied the bird.

“Keep staring at the sun like that and you’ll lose your eye a lot quicker.”

Link jerked his head down at the sound of Nabooru’s voice. The Gerudo queen was standing by his side with a sheathed blade and a shield in her hands. Link was ashamed he hadn’t heard her approach, and he distracted himself by pointing up. “A bird--an owl. That’s what I was looking at.”

“An owl?” Nabooru repeated, frowning, and she looked up as well. “There’s no owl,” she said after a quick search of the sky.

Link looked up again and mirrored Nabooru’s frown when he saw an empty sky. “It was just there!” he insisted.

“Is the sun already frying your brain?” Nabooru teased. She smiled when Link shrugged. “Relax, I’m only joking. Here, take these.” She held out the Master Sword and the dented Hylian shield in her hands.

Link flinched away from the offered weapons; even going so far as to take a step back. Nabooru’s face fell to one of surprise and concern, and Link bowed his head with a shamed blush touching his cheeks. He tried a few times to speak and finally managed, “I’m… not worthy--”

“Don’t,” Nabooru cut in, and Link fell silent. “You’re more than worthy.”

“I killed my brother with that blade,” Link whispered. 

Nabooru sighed and cast her eyes down for a moment. “Link,” she finally said. “You’ll be doing a bit more killing before all of this is through. Both Ganondorf and Vaati are threatening countless lives. If you fail to act when necessary, all of those lives will stain your hands just as much as they will stain the enemies’.” 

Link still hesitated to accept his weapons, so Nabooru continued, “A hero is not all golden sunshine, flawless skill, and good looks.” She smiled a bit, and the barest hint of amusement touched Link’s lips. “Heroes are heroes because they are willing to do the things others cannot or will not do--and more often than not, those things are dark tasks that no one should have to bear. A hero is the one who can bear them, move on, and show that they are more than dark deeds. That they, above all, fight for the better good. Unfortunate things will happen. It’s inevitable in war and in times of darkness--trust me, I know. I lived through it.” 

Nabooru paused, and Link saw pain flash over her face. When she continued, it was with a crack in her voice. “People are hurt, killed, or forever changed. Your job is to make sure the unfortunate things don’t continue--to stem the flow of darkness and carry on the light.”

Link didn’t say anything, but he reached out and took the offered sword and shield. After securing them, he stood before Nabooru with a straight back for her inspection. She circled him once, admiring him from all angles--something Link was quite conscious of, as he attempted to follow the line of her wandering eyes without twisting his body. He had not forgotten her unorthodox approach to snapping him back to reality. 

Nabooru noticed Link watching her, and she stepped back to stand in front of him with a small smile. “Do I make you nervous?” she asked. Link’s blush answered the question for him, and Nabooru laughed. “Don’t worry,” she continued. “I should be the least of your troubles. Now, keep your head on straight in the desert, and be aware of natural dangers as well as unnatural ones. There are a lot of snakes and scorpions out there. Should you get bitten or stung, there’s an oasis by the Spirit Temple with healing properties. Fairies once made their home there. I’m not sure if they’re still around, but the water has retained some of their power.”

Nabooru handed Link a full canteen of water and a small bag of supplies. He took it with a word of thanks, accepted her good luck kiss on the cheek, and stepped into the desert. 

After the sandstorms had obscured Link, Nabooru looked down at his footprints and saw that the wind was already working to eliminate them. He was one more phantom in the wasteland now. She turned from the desolate view and worked her way up the slope to the fortress. She was only halfway there when one of her guards rushed to her, breathless. 

“Ganondorf is at the bridge!”

Well, Nabooru had wanted a change to happen, and the Goddesses were certainly delivering. “Has he made any threats or demands?” she asked.

“Only that he wishes to speak to you.”

“Then I’ll go meet him. No.” Nabooru raised a palm before her fellow Gerudo could speak again. “I don’t want any escorts. I’ll meet him alone.”

“But… My queen--”

“If he wanted to hurt us, he would have tried already,” Nabooru reasoned. “But if you feel you must do something, get a dozen of your best together to follow me, and stay out of sight.”

Nabooru didn’t wait for this task to be carried out. She made her way to the bridge on foot; she didn’t want to waste any time saddling a horse. It wasn’t long before the valley’s walls swallowed up the clamor of the fortress. Nabooru listened to her footsteps echo off the stone, and she thought of Link, who was also walking alone by now. 

“No, not alone,” Nabooru murmured. “He has Navi.” She smiled, feeling better. The smile faded when the path curved, and the bridge came into view. Ganondorf stood by one of the bridge’s posts on the Hyrulean side. His eyes were cast downstream along the Zora River, but he turned to Nabooru when he heard the scuff of her sandals against the rocky ground. Neither one crossed over onto the bridge. The valley carried their voices well enough.

“What do you want?” Nabooru asked with calculating eyes and a stiff, wary posture.

Ganondorf answered with a question of his own. “Where’s Link?”

“You just missed him,” Nabooru called with a satisfied smirk. “He walked into the wasteland about half an hour ago.”

Ganondorf looked downstream again, and Nabooru caught him muttering something. The odd thing was he appeared to answer himself. She couldn’t recall the habit from his days growing up beside her. She wondered if he was losing himself to his magic and the terrible things he was doing. But before she could begin to question Ganondorf on this, he turned away, and a portal bloomed in the air behind him.

“I suppose I’ll have to meet him on the other side then,” Ganondorf called to Nabooru before the portal enveloped him.

#

Following a straight line through a desert where visibility was at a near-zero was impossible, but Link didn’t dwell on that fact. He put his faith where it belonged and trusted whatever forces had guided him so far on his strange journey to become the hero everyone thought he could be. Instead of focusing on the harsh winds or hot sun, he put one foot in front of the other and did his best to keep a lookout for any dangers--such as venomous creatures, or sudden drop-offs into quicksand. He rationed his water, sipping only when he needed it, and when the sun was beginning to sink below the horizon he finally came across the old fort Nabooru had mentioned. 

The fort emerged out of the sandstorms as a dark stain against the tan canvas of desert. It was carved out of black stone, and only a short tower remained of the original structure. An open doorway revealed a shaft that led belowground. Link hurried to the opening and was pleased to find a sturdy ladder was built into the shaft’s wall to allow access to the underground shelter. He descended into the darkness of the fort.

“Fire,” Link whispered. Nabooru had included a lump of slow-burning fuel in the bag of supplies. Blinded by the dark, Link searched the room with arms outstretched, hunting for wood or hay to grow a fire. He discovered two standing torches still filled with oil. Link broke them apart and used the oil to soak the wood. He then cast a bit of Din’s Fire and, fed further by the lump of fuel, he soon had a small fire crackling warmly within the room. It fought back the cold that was replacing the humidity of the desert.

Eased, Link stretched out beside the fire to rest his travel-weary body. He made a small meal of the bread and cheese in the bag of supplies before he relaxed into sleep. His eyes slipped closed as he watched the flames dance.

#

The one-eyed wolf sat before Link and stared at him with its single-eyed gaze. Its tongue hung out of its toothy muzzle in a hungry expression. 

Link stared back in trepidation. What did the strange wolf want with him now?

_You believe you are not worthy to carry the sword on your back?_

Link reached over his shoulder and encountered the hilt of the Master Sword. His fingers flinched away from it, and his hand dropped down to his side.

_Do you also believe I would forget my payment just because you no longer accept that blade?_

“It’s the blade that doesn’t accept me,” Link corrected.

_Is that what you think?_

Link didn’t reply, but he had considered this very thing for a while now. Why else would the Master Sword go against his wishes to not harm Darcel? Link knew his brother wasn’t so dark as to deserve death at the end of the Master Sword; Darcel’s return at the very end proved that. It was a flaw of Link’s own that had caused the blade to turn against Darcel.

As if it could read Link’s mind, the wolf snarled, _You are a fool to think the Master Sword would allow that dark child to live._ Its harsh words dragged Link out of his troubled thoughts. _The Master Sword was created to destroy evil--to bind it and prevent it from spreading. That is why the blade is evil’s bane._

“My brother wasn’t--”

 _You’re blinded by your foolishness,_ the wolf cut in. Its snarl kicked up a notch. _I grow impatient with your stupidity. It’s time you start facing reality. I am taking more of my payment, descendant of the ancient hero, whether you are prepared to give it or not._

Blinding pain, radiating through his skull, yanked Link out of his sleep. He screamed and scrambled into a sitting position, retreating until his back hit a cold, stone wall. Something warm was trickling down his right cheek, and his head throbbed in agony with each thrum of his heightened pulse. He pressed a hand to his cheek, and when he pulled it away the firelight revealed a smear of red against his palm. 

Link followed the warm trail to his eye and wiped more blood away with frantic swipes of his fingers. It had already ceased flowing. Once his face was clean of it, Link relaxed against the wall and took several deep breaths. The pain was gone now, but a nervous flutter in his stomach remained. It increased into a troubled cramp when Link closed his left eye. The view from his lone right eye was enough to shorten his breath. The bright fire was a dim, orange glow in inky blackness. 

Link opened his left eye, and his view of the world widened to include the sharper image of the room on the left. The difference between the two eyes was significant enough to be a distraction now. Already he could feel the need to turn his head; to catch as much of the room in his better eye as he could, just in case danger lurked in his blind spot. He would have to quickly learn to live with his decreased vision if he wanted to survive long enough to be of any use to Hyrule.

Link relaxed his head forward on his neck and centered his vision. He felt the need to turn his head again, but ignored it. Both the Gorons and Impa had taught him tolerance to pain, along with endurance. This was an ordeal like any other, and Link focused on overcoming it until he was able to push it to the back of his mind. 

While he concentrated, Link caught sight of someone sitting opposite him on the other side of the fire. At first, he thought the combination of his shock and depleted vision was playing tricks on his mind. But the longer he stared, the more sure he was of the fact that Darcel was sitting across from him. 

Darcel didn’t look well. His red eyes were blank, the pupils dilated, and much of his gray hair was stained black with old blood. He was dressed in the ancient hero’s Zora tunic and armor that Link had buried him in. The hat and headband were missing, however. When Darcel stood up and turned around, Link saw a deep, vertical gash running up the back of his neck and head. 

“Let’s go, brother,” Darcel said in a voice that hissed along the edges. “You need a guide for the second half of your journey, correct? I will guide you.” He cast an encouraging look over his shoulder.

Link could only stare at what was clearly his brother’s spirit. His worries and pains were the farthest things from his mind. Now there was only guilt. “Darcel… I’m sorry--”

“Hurry, brother,” Darcel cut in. A smile touched his pale lips. 

Link stood up, smothered his fire with a few handfuls of sand, and collected his sword, shield, and supplies. 

Seeing these preparations, Darcel walked to the shaft leading up to the surface. Instead of climbing the ladder, he slowly floated up the shaft as if buoyed by a soft wind. Link made to follow, but a ball of light stopped him short a few feet from the ladder.

“Navi!” Link frowned and made to go around the fairy. She moved to block him again, and she bobbed up and down when his frown deepened. “Stay here, then,” Link snapped. He began to climb the ladder, and Navi zipped up to his collar after a moment’s hesitation.

The sun was up, and the desert was already hot. Darcel was waiting for Link at the top of the ladder. When Link stepped into the sun, Darcel floated out across the endless desert where he became near-invisible against the sandstorm. Link took off after him.

Darcel moved swiftly, and in jagged lines. Whenever Link thought he had caught up, his brother’s spirit would shoot off at a new angle and become almost invisible again against the sandstorm. The sand pulled at Link’s feet and strained his endurance, but more alarming was how much more of Darcel faded with the passing time. Link called his brother’s name and pleaded for the spirit to move slower. His words fell on deaf ears. Darcel’s spirit never slowed. He continued to lead Link along a meandering path for what felt like ages. Finally, with a sinister laugh, he disappeared altogether.

Link was left stranded in the midst of the sandstorm. The fort was out of sight, and he had no idea in which direction it lay, or how far. Time had become funny. Hours could have passed since Link had set out after Darcel, or perhaps mere minutes, or maybe days. 

The more Link thought on it, the more he became convinced it wasn’t Darcel he had followed. It was an evil spirit--or, more specifically, the evil spirit that was all that remained of Darcel’s warped soul. Link dropped to his knees in the sand and bowed over. He hid his face from the wind-driven sand and pulled up his collar to better protect Navi from the storm. 

“That wolf was right,” Link murmured. “I’m a fool. I was so convinced there was some good remaining in Darcel, I blindly followed him. Now I’ll probably die out here because of my stupidity.” He grimaced and closed his eyes against the sandstorm. He felt a thrumming against his neck, and he whispered, “I’m sorry, Navi. I should have listened to you, too.”

Death no longer held the appeal it had before; when Link was lost in grief and looking for an escape. He wanted to do right by Nabooru and seek out the Spirit Temple. He wanted to make an attempt to correct his mistakes by reflecting and learning from them. But now he had made the last mistake he ever would, and there was no way to correct it. 

_No, you can’t think like that,_ whispered a voice deep in Link’s mind. The same guiding voice from before? Link was relieved to hear its familiar tone encouraging him to dwell on anything but dark thoughts. 

_Are you going to just roll over and accept this?_ the voice continued. _Get on your feet! At least make an attempt to find your way back! You are a descendant of the ancient hero--start acting like one! You wouldn’t have gotten into half of your messes so far if you would just remember who you are supposed to be and where you come from!_

The voice was right. Link stiffened his resolve. Who was he? “I… I’m my father’s son,” Link whispered. He got to his feet, stumbling only slightly. “And he was _his_ father’s son. And we come from a line of heroes. We are destined to protect this land. I… I am destined…” 

Link stopped. He had raised his head to choose a path to walk, and his gaze had fallen onto a small child standing some feet away. 

The child stared back with bright blue eyes framed by blonde hair. When Link’s gaze fell on him, he smiled with a hint of playfulness in the expression, closed the distance between himself and Link, and wrapped tight arms around the Hylian’s legs.

_“Darcel…?”_

“Thank you, Link,” the child whispered. Despite the roaring sandstorm, Link heard him clearly. “Thank you. You freed me from the dark seed that had taken root. In death I found that freedom. I’m glad it was you, Link.” The arms tightened, and the child pressed his cheek against Link.

Confusion, grief, and despair threatened to overwhelm Link. He stood on trembling legs and attempted to get a grasp on his emotions. When he finally spoke, he could only manage a whisper of his own. “I killed you. I _murdered_ you.”

“You freed me,” the child--Darcel--corrected. “There was no other way.” The young spirit released his grip and took a step back. One of his small hands found Link’s, and he began to tug Link in confidence through the desert. “I’ll repay you by leading you through the storms. Take care, Link. Once we reach the end of the wasteland, I’ll no longer be here to guide and protect you.”

Link’s throat tightened. “Then… I’ll never see you again.”

“We’ll see each other again one day,” Darcel assured Link. “When your time in this world is done, we’ll be together again in the realm beyond this one.”

“In death,” Link simplified.

Darcel’s hand tightened briefly. It was warm for a spirit’s hand. “Yes,” he said. “This way, Link. Hurry.”

The young spirit of Darcel never left Link, and the Hylian followed his guide hand-in-hand in confidence. He never grew thirsty during the hours-long walk, or tired, and any hunger faded away. In fact, Link felt refreshed when he finally stepped out of the last of the storms and into a calm expanse of sand surrounded by low cliffs. In the midst of the area rose a towering structure carved out of stone. Link could see the shape of a seated goddess with hands outstretched--although in welcome or expectation of some payment, he wasn’t sure. 

“Goodbye, Link,” called a dwindling voice. 

Link turned. He had walked onto the calm sand without a thought to his guide. Now he watched Darcel’s young spirit swirl away with a gust of sandy wind. Link had time for one shout of Darcel’s name before his brother was gone. Again. However, the parting was less bitter than before, and Link managed a smile. He turned around and walked to the Spirit Temple. 

The sun was high in the sky, and its harsh, hot light threatened to drain all of the energy Link had regained on his walk through the wasteland. After taking a sip from his canteen, Link hurried to the temple in hopes that its interior would provide shelter from the heat. The shade of the temple enveloped him in stale but cold air, and his skin broke out in gooseflesh when the sweat covering it cooled. 

The foyer of the temple was divided into a lower and an upper level. Effigies of cobras guarded both sides of the wide staircase that connected the two levels. While Navi flitted about, shaking sand from her wings, Link spied something inscribed on the hood of one of the cobras. He walked over and ran a finger over the worn stone to read what was written.

_“Those who seek to reflect, seek the goddess within.”_

Link murmured these words aloud, and no sooner was the last syllable out of his lips than he heard a grating of stone. Link walked around the cobra and watched a slab of stone descend from the ceiling of the room. It touched down in the center of the upper level. No ropes or chains supported it; it moved by magic. Link mounted the short staircase and approached the stone on wary feet. It was just big enough for a person to stand on. 

“What have I got to lose?” Link muttered. He whistled for Navi, and the fairy shot back to take up her usual place in his collar. Once she was secure, Link stepped onto the stone slab. It ascended at once, nearly sending him tumbling off of it. Link steadied his feet and looked up to watch his approach to a square hole in the ceiling. 

After rising up through the hole, Link found himself standing at the end of the first stretch of a curving hall. He walked down it and around two turns before he came to a large door. Link dug around along its bottom edge until he was able to get a grip on it, and he used his hard-won strength to lift the door up into its frame. It rose with a grinding of stone and old chains, and Link stepped out into a towering room where a second, immense stone goddess sat; hands stretched out, and legs folded beneath her. A snake was curled around her near-bare body, ending with its wide jaws resting atop her head, framing it. 

Link didn’t like the looks of this goddess. Her smile seemed off, and the sensual way the snake was wound about her brought to mind deals with demons and dark forces; which in turn reminded him of Vaati. With a shudder, Link cast his eyes around to take in the rest of the room. It showed clear signs of the passing ages. Sand lay everywhere; collected in corners in tall drifts, and coating the floor in a fine veil of grains. Cracks ran through some of the columns and stone sculptures, including the towering goddess. They made Link feel uneasy to stand in the shadow of the outstretched stone hands. 

There was some sunlight coming in through a wide opening in the high ceiling. A platform on chains hung down from this opening. Link added more light by casting Din’s Fire on a few torches that sat at the goddess’s base. When the last torch was lit, the clank of heavy chains drew Link’s gaze upward again. The platform below the ceiling’s opening was lowering itself to the floor. Link took a few steps back and watched it descend until it touched down with a dull boom of sound. 

“The convenience is appreciated,” Link said to no one as he stepped onto the wide platform. “However, I can’t help but shake the feeling that I’m being set up here.”

Much like before, Link was lifted into a new area--this time to a room with a much lower, slanted ceiling. It was another room that was divided into two levels. Cells appeared to take up the upper level while on the bottom there were sculptures of suns and another cobra; this time with a mirror fitted into its hood instead of an inscription. Sunlight filtered in through a large, circular window of glass that was grimy with age.

Link’s eyes fixed on the mirror, and he approached it on slow steps as if hypnotized. He never saw Ganondorf. The Gerudo was leaning against the wall in a patch of shadow to Link’s right, and the Hylian didn’t notice him in his depleted peripheral vision. 

_You can see now that we were right,_ Koume whispered in Ganondorf’s ear.

 _The boy has come here searching for a way to defeat you,_ Kotake pointed out.

_Look at him, desecrating our sacred temple._

_Strutting around as if he owns the place!_

_Just because he’s the Goddesses’ chosen one._

_Just because he thinks he’s better than you!_

Link heard whispers and heavy footfalls, but too late. He turned left, following his better vision and his stronger side, but Ganondorf came at him on the right. He sent a heavy blow fueled by dark magic into Link’s midsection, and the Hylian flew across the room into a wall. He hit it hard, crying out in pain, and collapsed to the floor with a groan. 

“I gave you every opportunity,” Link heard Ganondorf say in his deep rumble. “And yet you persist in standing against me.”

The faint _shick_ of a sword being drawn forced Link to raise his head. His midsection panged sharply when he attempted to rise. It felt like a rib was broken. Link bit his lip against the pain and forced himself onto his feet. He was knocked down at once by the flat of a blade, and he curled his pained body against the floor with a yelp.

“Get up!” Ganondorf snapped. “Get up and fight me like a man!” He raised his blade--long and black, with an elaborate hilt. It thrummed with the low hum of evil energy. The sword’s wide point was directed down at Link’s sprawled form.

Link forced his pained body to move. He barely avoided being skewered at the end of Ganondorf’s sword. The blade bit into stone instead and became stuck for a few seconds, giving Link the time he needed to rise to his feet and draw his sword and shield. 

Ganondorf freed his sword and took a step back in the wake of the light emanating from the Master Sword’s blade. Gerudo and Hylian contemplated each other in a small silence broken only by Link’s gasps. Each breath flexed his lungs against what felt like a poking rib. 

Ganondorf marked the damage on Link’s shield with an odd look. For a moment, the darkness left his face, and in an almost kind voice he said, “I heard you had your first taste of blood not too long ago--and you were nearly undone by it. I’m sorry, Link. I should have protected Darcel--No, both of you--better.”

The fatherly tone and words were a ruse. Link wasn’t going to let it fool him. “I… I freed my brother from your evil grip,” he said. “Yours and Vaati’s. He’s beyond your cruel reach now.”

“I was never cruel to Darcel,” Ganondorf said. “I gave him everything he wanted, within reason. It was Vaati who--”

 _“I don’t want to hear your lies!”_ Link shouted, and he added a furious swipe of his sword. He paid for his anger with a sharp pain in his chest, and he tasted blood at the back of his throat. He pushed this aside and fixed a furious glare on Ganondorf. _“Everything_ comes back to you! You usurped the king--you had been planning it for ages! You invited Vaati, you spoiled my brother with your dark teachings, and you are responsible for _every_ terrible thing that’s happened!”

_The impudent brat._

_Kill him, Ganondorf._

The softness left Ganondorf’s face, and he charged. Link warded off a heavy punch with his shield, but staggered under the power of the blow. He fell to one knee and raised his shield over his head to block a swipe of Ganondorf’s blade next. It sparked against the Hylian shield with a burst of sorcery. When the sword lifted away, Link hurried to his feet and backed up. He felt something shift in his collar, and he cried out in alarm when Navi made for Ganondorf’s face. 

Ganondorf’s wide hand swiped at Navi. He caught her in a cage of fingers and made as if to crush her. He stopped when Link cried out again. “Shall I kill her?” 

Link shook his head and reached out for the fairy. “No, please, she’s my friend.”

Ganondorf sneered. “Look at you, begging like a dog. And only for the life of an insignificant fairy? You’re too soft, boy.” Ganondorf kicked out at Link, and his large boot connected with the Hylian’s chest in a heavy blow. 

Link flew back into the same wall as before, and a large crack appeared in the stone when his body connected. He dropped to the floor and at once made an attempt to stand. He coughed up a splatter of blood when he managed to rise to his hands and knees. 

_That’s it! You’re making it look easy, Ganondorf!_

_Now finish the job._

_Do it do it do it do it do_

Ganondorf shook his head, and some of the fog cleared from his mind. He could feel the fairy fluttering in his hand; throwing her small body against his palm and fingers in an attempt to get free. He opened his hand and released her, and she streaked over to Link and took up a roost on his shoulder to offer her small comfort. 

“Navi…” Link began in a weak voice, but his words dried up when Ganondorf’s shadow fell over him. 

“You’ve been training with various people for weeks,” the Gerudo said. “One of them was Impa. I thought she taught you better. How was I able to catch you completely off guard when you entered this room, boy?”

Instead of answering, Link sat up and slashed out with his sword. Given his low position and his injury, it wasn’t enough. Ganondorf avoided it and stabbed out with his own sword. The blade’s tip bit into stone, pinning Link’s shirt above his right shoulder along the way. Its sharp edge pressed flush against his neck. 

“Don’t move,” Ganondorf warned in a growl. 

Link stilled. Even if he had wanted to, he didn’t have the energy to move again so quickly. He sat against the wall and tried to collect his breath while a cold, steel edge threatened to open up his throat with only a few hairs’ breadths more of movement. 

_Kill him!_

_Do it!_

_Do it do it do_

“I shouldn’t be calling you soft,” Ganondorf said once he was sure Link would remain seated. “Not when I’ve left you live for so long despite your insistence to go against me. Perhaps under all of this muscle and dark magic, I still have a tender spot in my heart for you.”

Link uttered a breathless scoff. He winced when the sword at his throat pressed closer. He turned his head from it, and Ganondorf fell behind a veil of vague shadows and hints of light.

Ganondorf marked the flat, vague focus of Link’s right eye, and his own eyes widened for a moment before they narrowed in a thoughtful expression. “So that’s the reason. You’re going blind in this eye, boy.”

“You think I didn’t notice?” Link snapped. 

_Kill him already, Ganondorf!_

Koume’s and Kotake’s joint voices grated on Ganondorf’s ears. He gasped in their wake, and managed, “So you still have some bite in you.” He drew his sword out of the wall and readied it for a thrust. “Let me snuff it out.”

Link’s eyes widened as they tracked the centering blade… before they snapped up when the sound of cracking stone drew his attention. 

Ganondorf looked up as well, and together he and Link watched the crack in the wall behind the Hylian lengthen and widen, heading towards the ceiling. It picked up speed there and split to form a wide circle, carving out a slab of stone big enough to crush a man.

Ganondorf leapt back. With a crack of giving stone, the marked-off portion of the ceiling dropped with an echoing boom in the place where the Gerudo stood a second before. Dust and sand was tossed up into the air, and Link hid his eyes behind his arm to protect them against the fine grains. The thickened air did nothing to help him catch his breath. When the debris settled, Link lowered his arm to find Ganondorf studying him from his new position on the other side of the slab. 

Ganondorf vanished his sword away with a sweep of his hand. “So we’re not meant to end it here,” he muttered. “Fine. I’m all right with that. You, boy.” Catching Link’s eyes, Ganondorf said, “When you’re ready, meet me at my castle. That is where we’ll finish what we started here.”

Link nodded, and Ganondorf opened a dark portal through which he disappeared without another word. Only when the portal winked out did Link finally release a pained gasp. He relaxed his body and felt his punished muscles sing in pain. He was sure now that a rib was broken. It made standing up a chore once he gathered enough strength for the act. 

“Navi…” Link coughed. “You okay? He didn’t hurt you, did he? Navi?” Link looked around. The fairy had disappeared. After some searching, he found her hovering in front of the mirrored cobra statue. Link sheathed his sword, worked his slow way across the room, and stood before the mirror. The cobra’s eyes were of ruby, and they flashed at Link when he stopped before the statue. A deep voice spoke up from below him and traveled through the very stone of the temple to sound in his ears. 

_I will show you only truth. It is your choice to accept it or reject it for what it is._

“I have a choice?” Link asked.

 _There is always a choice._

“What is this truth?”

 _It is the truth behind your destiny._

“I don’t understand,” Link said with a shake of his head. “I’m supposed to save Hyrule. That’s my destiny. I’m the descendant of the hero.”

_Do you want to see the truth?_

_“What_ truth?” Link snapped, and in response the mirror’s surface began to change.


	22. Guidance and Misdirection

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> At the Spirit Temple, Link tries to learn a truth, but is interrupted once again by a deadly force, only to be saved by a new ally.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for your support!
> 
> I do love the part in _Ocarina of Time_ when you must sneak through the Gerudo Fortress. (I was fond of allowing myself to be captured, too haha) Therefore, I included a bit of that in this chapter.
> 
> Please enjoy, thank you! Feedback and kudos are awesome.

# In the Shade of a Hero

### Guidance and Misdirection

Light and shadow played across the mirror set into the cobra statue. Link stood on unsteady feet and attempted to discern something from it. The voice of what he believed to be the Spirit Temple’s stone goddess had promised him a truth would be revealed. Did she mean a vision would be shown? Link took another step closer to the mirror. He nearly fell over when the act sparked pain through his broken rib and sore muscles. Tottering, Link put a hand out to brace it against the mirror.

At his touch, the surface of the mirror flashed with a bright light. Link straightened up and raised his arm to block the light until it faded around him. Blinking, he lowered his arm and peered curiously at the image that was coming into focus; as if the mirror was a window into another world. He saw a young, male figure dressed in a Kokiri tunic, and holding a sword and shield. The young man’s back was to Link, and he was facing another man with red hair, a dark complexion, and yellow eyes. 

“Ganondorf?” Link murmured, and he forced his aching body forward so that he could press his forehead against the mirror. His breath fogged the glass while he watched the figures come into focus. “That’s me, then. Is this my future?”

Link hoped this wasn’t the case. He watched himself square off against Ganondorf in battle, but he barely managed his first swing of his sword before the Gerudo bested him with a heavy blow of his own dark blade. The young Hylian staggered and fell to the ground, and his hand flew up to his face. He scrambled back on his hands and knees and--

A sharp pain in Link’s left ankle jerked him out of his concentration on the images. They faded from the mirror once his eyes dropped to the ground. A rattlesnake was coiled up not far from Link’s left foot. Its rattle was up and shaking in warning. Shifting his eyes, Link saw two pinpricks in the side of his boot. His ankle and foot were beginning to burn with a feeling like cold fire, and it was spreading upward. 

_HOW DARE YOU?_

Navi dove at the snake, and with a hiss it slithered away when faced with the intimidating ball of light. The fairy returned to her partner, who staggered to one knee.

_HOW DARE YOU USE ONE OF MY OWN?_

That was the voice of the temple’s goddess. The building was shaking under Link’s feet. He could feel a tremendous power building around him.

_HOW DARE I?_ This second voice was deeper; older. _YOU’VE OVERSTEPPED YOUR BOUNDS._

“Navi!” Link tried to call, but he was losing strength fast, and the call died into a whimper of pain. How was the poison spreading so quickly? Was his weakened state facilitating the process? “Navi… The oasis,” Link managed in a slow voice. He had remembered Nabooru’s words about how the oasis’s healing properties. Link pawed at the air where he could see Navi hovering. She was doubling before his eyes, and the rest of the room was shifting around in circles. “Where…”

Navi shot across the room to a ladder. She alternated between hovering by the ladder and zooming between it and Link. The Hylian took the hint and forced his body first to walk, and next to climb. There was a door on the second level of the room. Navi circled in front of it, and Link pushed it up into the ceiling to reveal a hallway with sunlight at its end.

Blood pooled at the back of Link’s throat again. He spat it out, and it left his mouth in a weak dribble. “I shouldn’t be pushing myself,” he murmured. He kept forgetting about his broken rib, only remembering when an act of exertion gripped his body in pain. But Link also remembered his training, and he pushed past the pain. What he couldn’t do was fight back the spreading poison. It was starting to weaken him even more than Ganondorf’s abuse had done. He staggered down the hall and out into the sunlight with eyes half-clouded in a strange fog. Behind him, a deep crack of sound echoed out of the temple, and it shook again, briefly and powerfully.

Link stumbled out to a high ledge. It was to the external stone goddess’s left. The land in which the Spirit Temple sat spread out below him--far below. Twinkling in the sunlight was a pool of water. It appeared as a silver sheen in Link’s bad right eye, and it twisted and circled in the weakening vision of his left. 

Navi also floated in and out of Link’s eyesight. She was hovering by an old staircase that was carved into the side of the temple. Link looked long and hard at the staircase as if trying to determine its function. He took a step towards it. 

Link’s feet tangled up, and he staggered to the side. He felt his boots slip into empty space, and the next second he was falling. His eyes widened before he closed them in anticipation of the sudden stop that would kill him. 

That stop came much sooner than Link expected, and with only a hard pang in his ribs when he was jolted. Opening his eyes, Link looked up to find talons gripping the front of his shirt. There was a great, brown bird carrying him; an owl. 

Navi was flying just beneath the owl’s flapping wings, but she dropped down to Link’s chest when she saw him open his eyes. They didn’t stay open for long. Link closed them again when he finally lost consciousness, and he never registered his plummet into water when the owl dropped him into the oasis a minute later.

#

Link was slow to wake. He first became aware of his body--more specifically, the lack of pain that had once gripped it. When his consciousness caught up with his stirring limbs, Link opened his eyes to find himself lying on the ground in the shade of a palm tree. The sound of moving water was in his ears, along with the howl of distant sandstorms, and the air was warm. All of this came together to remind Link that he was in the desert. Sitting up proved the fact true. In the distance, the Spirit Temple loomed over the area, and not far to the right from where Link was seated, an oasis rippled in the desert wind. 

Navi streaked in front of Link’s line of sight. He turned his head to follow her, and his blue gaze landed on an owl standing on the ground opposite his position. The owl was nearly as tall as a man, and it was covered in dark brown feathers. It was the same owl that had caught Link as he fell. Link recognized the bird from other times, as well.

“I’ve seen you before,” Link said to the owl. “You’ve been following me, haven’t you?”

“I’ve been watching over you from the very beginning,” the owl confirmed in a male voice. Although his beak never moved, Link heard the owl’s words clear as day. “My name is Kaepora Gaebora, and I’ve been your guardian long before you first heard me on your early trek into the overtaken Hyrule Castle.”

“What?” Link shook his head. “But… Why?”

“Because you were always destined to become what you very nearly are,” Kaepora Gaebora said. “There was never a time when you were supposed to wander off the path to your destiny. I kept you on that path.” The owl clicked his beak once. “Didn’t the goddess show you the truth in the Spirit Temple?”

Link ducked his head and shook it once. “The snake…” he began.

Kaepora Gaebora ruffled his feathers. “Foul things,” he muttered. “But you are healed now. The oasis cleared the poison and soothed your wounds.”

Link jerked his head up. “Then…” He lifted a hand to cover his left eye, but the hope that had touched his face darkened into sorrow. “It didn’t heal my eye.”

“What about your eye?” the owl asked.

Link explained everything to Kaepora Gaebora, starting with the Great Deku Tree’s words that had led him to the Lost Woods, in which lay the Sacred Grove. The owl listened to Link’s tale of the required sacrifice to wield the Master Sword. When Link was finished, the bird’s wings ruffled again in irritation.

“You were deceived.”

“Ex-Excuse me?” Link stuttered. 

Kaepora Gaebora fixed an unflinching gaze onto Link. “The Master Sword was always yours to wield, and yours alone, since the very day of your birth. You and that blade were meant to be together--without any required sacrifice on your part. Someone intervened and forced you to give payment, but only for their benefit. I am sorry, Link. I should have protected you, but I had no idea this had occurred until I heard it from you just now.”

Link felt hollowed out. He looked down at his lap through his depleted vision and blinked away the threat of tears. “It’s not your fault,” he murmured to his lap. “But what I don’t understand is why someone would want to weaken me if I’m supposed to save Hyrule.”

“Perhaps this someone wanted to see you grow stronger by overcoming weakness,” Kaepora Gaebora suggested, kindly. Link shrugged one shoulder, and the owl clicked his beak sympathetically. “But you’re allowed help,” Kaepora Gaebora continued. “Link, go back to the temple. Go back to the mirror. The temple’s goddess should help you. And keep an eye out for snakes,” the owl added in a gently teasing tone.

Link nodded and gained his feet. All of his strength was back, and he had no trouble making his way across the sand to the Spirit Temple. Inside, he once again rode the block of stone to the upper floor. He got a jolt when he entered the main chamber. The temple goddess’s stern face had crumbled to pieces. But the chained platform lowered for him again. Link picked his way around the rubble and rode it to the top floor.

Navi accompanied him, hitching a ride in his collar as always. When Link returned to the top room of the temple, the fairy flitted out and hovered in front of the cobra statue. Link approached the statue and put a hand out to touch the cool glass of the mirror. 

_Forgive me._

The temple goddess’s voice was heavy with sorrow.

_Forgive me. I am not one of her agents. She will not allow me to show you the truth._

Link had no idea who this “She” was, but he didn’t want to push the temple goddess. He could hear weariness in her voice alongside the sorrow. “It’s okay,” he said around a sigh. “My trip wasn’t wasted.” He thought on the darkness that had fallen over Ganondorf’s face, and on the pain he had so easily inflicted against someone he once cared for.

_But I can offer this._

Cracks formed in the statue around the mirror. They widened and grew, and Link took two steps back in fear that he had done something wrong. When light bloomed in the cracks, Navi zipped away from the mirror. Link followed her lead without question and took shelter behind a column of stone. A moment later, the room shook with an explosion. 

After the final clatter of tumbling stone died away, Link edged out from behind the column and discovered a shield floating in the air where once the cobra statue had stood. It was larger than the Hylian shield on his back, and it was rimmed in red with a mirror-like surface inscribed with celestial symbols. It reflected Link almost perfectly when he reached out and took hold of the shield. 

_“Wow._ Thank you,” Link said to the temple’s goddess. The shield was stunning to behold, and although it appeared to be made out of glass Link had no doubts about its sturdiness. 

“Oh, but…” Link put the mirror shield aside and removed his Hylian shield from his back. He marked its dents and scrapes, and remembered Darcel’s fury. Link sighed and closed his eyes. “I have to start moving past his death at some point. Right?” He opened his eyes, found Navi, and watched the fairy dip up and down in agreement. 

“But I won’t forget him,” Link promised. He cast his gaze around and noticed a shelf of stone set into a wall. The shield fit perfectly on the shelf. Link picked up the mirror shield and slung it onto his back in the Hylian shield’s place. 

When Link returned to the oasis shore, Kaepora Gaebora flapped his wings in approval of the new shield. “It fits you very well!” the owl remarked. “And it has magical properties, too. It will reflect magical attacks, and legend says it will show certain truths when the right time arises.”

“Perhaps I’ll see the truth of my destiny in it someday,” Link said.

“Perhaps,” Kaepora Gaebora echoed. “Well, you’ve succeeded in the spiritual task you were sent to do. Nabooru will be pleased, I’m sure. You should return and show her that shield. By the way, do you need a lift back to the fortress, Link?”

Link smiled and shook his head. “I know where the fortress is, so I can use Farore’s Wind to get back there, but thank you for the offer. And thank you for watching over me.”

“I’ll continue to do so until you no longer need me,” Kaepora Gaebora promised. “You still have a little growing up to do, Link. I wish you the best of luck.”

“Thank you,” Link said again. He took a step back to allow Kaepora Gaebora room to take off, and the owl lifted up into the air with powerful beats of his wings. He swiftly floated up on the warm air baking off of the desert, and it wasn’t long before he was no more than a dot in the high sky. Soon even that disappeared, and Link vanished himself in a swirl of powerful wind. 

#

Moons and stars danced over Nabooru’s face when the sun glinted off of the mirror shield’s surface. “You did very well,” she praised Link, who stood nearby amongst a group of admiring Gerudo. “You conquered the wasteland, overcame obstacles, and reflected upon yourself.”

Link nodded his head, but added, “I think I have some more reflection to do. I didn’t learn everything, though what I did learn was troubling enough.”

Nabooru looked up from her inspection of the mirror shield and fixed a hard look on Link. “Tell me,” she invited.

Link relayed the brief image he had seen in the mirror--the image of him being bested by Ganondorf and beginning to retreat. He also shared his discovery that the sacrifice of his eye was needless and in all likelihood a trick meant to weaken him. 

“And it’s working,” Link added with a shamed bow of his head. “I didn’t see Ganondorf in time. He met me at the Spirit Temple. He would have killed me, too, if the ceiling hadn’t nearly fallen on him.”

“That doesn’t make you weak,” Nabooru said while her fellow Gerudo comforted Link. “It just means you’re unprepared and unfamiliar with your flaws. But I can fix that.” 

She flashed a scheming expression that twisted Link’s gut with anxiety. Too nervous to speak, he watched Nabooru approach him. She handed back the mirror shield, and Link fitted it onto his back. When he looked up from completing this task, he noticed Nabooru had borrowed a halberd from one of the guards.

Nabooru pressed a kiss to Link’s cheek and murmured in his ear, “I’m really sorry for what I’m about to do. I just want you to know that.”

“What--” Link’s words died in an agonized, breathless cry when Nabooru swung the halberd out and up between his legs. The hard wood of the halberd connected at the fork of Link’s legs, and he went down onto his knees with tears in his eyes. The Gerudo women groaned and backed away while he cowered on the ground and tried to collect any coherent thought through the pain. 

“Any man who wishes to be recognized by us must go through a trial,” Nabooru said over Link’s groans. “And since you’re not quite a man yet, you will go through _two_ trials. The first one starts now. Look up at me, boy.”

Link lifted his head with difficulty. He wanted to curl up into a corner and die. Instead, he received another blow, this time to the side of his head, and his pain faded into darkness. 

#

Link opened his eyes to find his head aching, his lower body sore, and his hands bound by rope behind his back. Once he was fully awake, he took quick stock of his surroundings. He was lying in a deep cell. The only exits appeared to be a trapdoor in the ceiling and a square, propped-open window close to the top of the room. The humid atmosphere of the cell and sand collected in its corners told Link he was still in the Gerudo Fortress.

“Hoy, Link! You awake in there yet?”

That was Nabooru’s voice, sounding from above. Link sat up and called back, “Hello?” 

“Oh good, you _are_ up,” Nabooru said from the other side of the trapdoor. “Remember those two trials I mentioned? Welcome to the first one, kid. Your job is to get out of that cell and to make your way to my chambers within the fortress. There, you’ll have to figure out where we’ve hidden your little friend.”

“My little friend… _Navi!”_ Link looked for the fairy, but Navi didn’t emerge from any hidden spot. 

“That’s right,” Nabooru confirmed. “We have little Navi all locked up. Now listen to me, kid. There are rules. Every guard and servant in this fortress is against you for this trial. That means you will need to make your way past them all while avoiding capture. If you’re captured, the trial starts over again. With me so far?”

“Yes,” Link grumbled.

Nabooru laughed at the sound of his miserable tone. “You’re not allowed to cause any serious harm to my people, Link, though you may incapacitate them if necessary. I’m sure Impa taught you a few non-lethal methods to take out your enemies, right?” 

“Yes,” Link said again, this time with a little more confidence. He was mentally going over the chokeholds he knew to render an opponent unconscious. 

“Good,” Nabooru remarked. “And one last thing, kid. You’re not allowed to use your magic--that means no fire, shield, or teleporting tricks.” Link cursed, and Nabooru laughed again. “Sorry, but I can’t make it too easy. But I have confidence in you, and with any luck I’ll be seeing you in my chambers before too long. You can begin your escape at any time.”

Link was already working on such. He had folded his body and legs through the circle of his bound arms and was now reaching back to see if he had his sword. No such luck. Even the scabbard was gone, along with his new mirror shield. Link sighed and dropped his bound hands to his lap. Looking down, he noticed the buttons of his borrowed Gerudo shirt were made of bone. A quick tug on one of the buttons ripped it off, and some pressure to the button against the floor of the cell snapped it in half, creating a somewhat sharp edge. Link stuck this in his mouth and sawed at a portion his bindings by rubbing the threads against the sharp button half. 

The rope frayed as its thin fibers were snapped one-by-one. It was several minutes before Link got halfway through the bindings, and at that point he used his strength to snap the weakened rope by pulling his hands apart. With one hand free, removing the bindings from the other hand was a breeze.

Link had to work a little harder to escape the cell itself. Fortunately, the open window was close to a corner of the room. By pressure-walking up the wall where two of the cell’s sides met, Link was able to gain enough height to grab the ledge of the window. After that it was a simple manner of pulling himself up to survey a route into the fortress. 

Link was startled by the drop down to the ground. Even with his depleted depth perception he could tell the fall would be fatal if he attempted it. With a downwards route impossible, Link looked up. He noticed the propped window created a small shelf, and from atop that shelf he was sure he could reach the fence that lined a balcony above. 

After mapping this first leg of his escape, Link straightened up on the window ledge and worked on reaching the fence. He thanked Darunia and Impa for the strength and acrobatic exercises he was put through, for they helped him reach the fence and hop over it in quick time. There were no guards on the balcony, and Link noted with amusement the trapdoor leading to the cell he had just escaped. He set his eyes on an open doorway and hurried towards it on light feet. 

Link had a rough idea where Nabooru’s chambers were, but he was unfamiliar with the area of the fortress he found himself in after walking down the long, sloping hall from the prison cell. However, he was familiar with the guards walking the edges of the kitchen at the end of the hall. Link had come out at the top of a set of stairs, and now he dropped onto his stomach and marked the two guards’ paths. They appeared to be following a fixed route. After studying the patterns for a few minutes, Link slipped down the stairs and made his way past the guards, moving in their blind spots, until he reached a hall. 

Link nearly ran into another guard patrolling the hall. The two locked eyes, and the Gerudo’s gaze widened in alarm. Link moved quickly, stifling her warning with one hand and locking his free arm around her neck. 

“Sorry,” Link whispered when he lowered the unconscious Gerudo to the floor. He left before another patrol could stumble across the knocked-out guard.

Through rooms and halls, Link swiftly made his way without a single alarm raised. Occasionally he had to take out a guard on patrol, but for the most part he left no clear path behind him, and soon he was in a familiar area of the fortress. Link sighed with relief. He was only a few halls away from Nabooru’s chambers. He moved with a little more haste. He took foolish risks that nearly got him caught, including one botched attempt to move past a yawning guard. She noticed his shadow thrown against the wall in front of her by the glow of a torch, and she swung around and tripped Link up with a sweep of her halberd. Rather than attempt to subdue the guard, Link bolted for Nabooru’s chamber, leaving the Gerudo behind him to call for help. 

A mob of guards was soon hot on Link’s trail. He had a feeling the chase would end as soon as he stepped into Nabooru’s chambers. Sure enough, the moment his boots touched the woven carpet of the room, all shouts and hurrying footsteps behind him died away. 

Nabooru’s gentle laughter echoed out of some dark corner. “So you made it.”

Link took a deep breath and laughed himself. “Yeah. Geez, when you Gerudo women set your eyes on a guy, you’re intent on catching him, huh?”

“Only when he’s as handsome as you,” Nabooru teased, and she walked out into the lamplight of the room. A sweep of her hand drew Link’s gaze to three large, covered boxes sitting on the floor of the room. “Navi is in this room and she’s waiting for you to find her. But you only have one try to guess where she’s hidden. If you fail on that first and only try, the trial starts all over again, and Navi will be hidden in a new place.” Seeing the daunted look that came to Link’s eyes, Nabooru quickly soothed, “Relax, Link. Faith in the Goddesses watching over you got you this far. A little more faith in yourself will lead you right to Navi.”

Link approached the three covered boxes sitting on the carpet. He stepped in front of the farthest left and studied it, looking for some clue. What he noticed instead was Nabooru, who moved close to his left when he bowed down towards the box. The movement seemed threatening; as if she was about to pounce. As if she knew Link was choosing wrong.

_Well of course she knows where Navi is hidden,_ Link reminded himself, and he moved to the middle box. Again he bowed down to inspect it, and again he noticed Nabooru shifting in the corner of his good eye. That left the last box on the right. Link moved to it and put out a hand to pull off its cover.

Nabooru moved closer to him again.

Link dropped his hand. Navi wasn’t in any of these boxes. But then where was she? Hadn’t Nabooru said Navi was in one of the boxes? Link thought back on Nabooru’s words.

_Navi is in this room…_

Link turned around to face Nabooru, and the Gerudo took a step back in surprise. “Yes?” she prompted.

Link held his hand out towards her. “I’d like Navi back now. She’s not in any of these boxes, so that must mean you’re holding her.”

Nabooru’s eyes widened before she ducked her head with a laugh. “Damn. Here I was, hoping I would have the pleasure of knocking you out again.” She dropped her hands to a small bag that was hanging off of her belt. A quick tug on the knot binding the bag closed had Navi freed. The fairy zipped out of the bag and flew over to Link, where she circled his head in happy loops. 

Nabooru smiled at the reunion and announced, “You’ve passed the first trial. One more awaits you, and it will be far more challenging than this one was. This upcoming trial will prove you have grown enough to be called a hero of legend; that you can overcome not only obstacles in the environment, but also your own obstacles--your weaknesses and fears.” Nabooru cast an apologetic look at the fairy now perched atop Link’s blonde head. “Navi will not be allowed to help you. You must do this alone.”

“Okay,” Link agreed. 

Nabooru nodded and reached into the same bag that had held Navi. She pulled out a length of black fabric--a blindfold--and approached Link with it stretched between her hands. 

“Wait--” Link didn’t have time to protest. Nabooru wrapped and tied the blindfold around his head, blocking his vision entirely with it. “Nabooru, what is this?” Link asked after the Gerudo had moved away.

“The second trial,” Nabooru said. “You will be facing a series of chambers in total blindness. If you can work past that, then you should have no problem living with halved vision. Here, you’re allowed this.”

A scabbard was thrust into Link’s hands. He recognized the hilt of the Master Sword sticking out of it, and he relaxed a little. 

“This will also be a trial to test your relationship with the Master Sword,” Nabooru added. “Complete this upcoming trial, Link, and you will be fully recognized as a hero. You will also be recognized as a man, and you will be marked in the fashion of the Gerudo so that everyone knows it. Are you ready to face this trial?”

Link tightened his grip on the scabbard in his hands. “Yes.”

Nabooru took hold of one of Link’s elbows. “Then I’ll take you to the training grounds. Walk with me, Link.”

Relying solely on Nabooru’s guidance, Link walked through halls and rooms until he felt hot sunlight fall on him. He was outside. He could hear the excited footfalls of the other Gerudo as they followed along behind him and Nabooru. They chattered amongst themselves in their native tongue, and Link caught snatches of laughter.

“Is this some sort of amusement for your tribe?” Link asked Nabooru.

“It’s not every day that someone attempts the trials in the training grounds,” Nabooru said. “Here we are.”

Link heard a metal grate being moved aside, and he was left alone at the top of a staircase. He could feel cool air wafting up from belowground, along with a musty smell. 

“Whenever you’re ready,” Nabooru called from behind Link. 

Link took a steadying breath. He secured the scabbard in his hands to his back, tightened the buckle, and made sure the Master Sword was still within it. Despite the damage the blade had wrought, the familiar feel of the its hilt comforted Link, bringing him unexpected peace and clarity of mind. Blindly, he descended the stairs to his second trial.


	23. Into the Fold

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Link goes through his second trial in the Gerudo Fortress, and encounters an unexpected trial afterward.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!
> 
> The trials take subtle inspiration from various _Zelda_ games/manga, so I hope you enjoy picking the little bits out!
> 
> Kudos and feedback are awesome. Please enjoy!

# In the Shade of a Hero

### Into the Fold

With each step Link blindly took down the staircase, he felt the air around him grow colder and staler. He tried to ignore the pressing unknown as he descended with his left hand out to his side, trailing against the wall. He stepped with confidence despite his apprehension, and before too long his feet dropped onto a wide stretch of floor that was too large to be another step. He had reached the bottom. He dropped his hand from the wall and stretched it and its partner out in sweeping motions.

A low, aged chuckle greeted this action, and Link instinctively drew his arms in and unsheathed his blade. 

The chuckle sounded again, and a voice Link recognized as the Gerudo Elder said, “Put away your blade, child. You don’t need it at the moment.” Link sheathed the Master Sword, and the woman’s voice continued, “So you passed your first trial, hmmm? Nabooru was too easy on you, child. In my younger days you would have had to battle to free your little fairy friend--and let me assure you the Gerudo tribe are no lightweights when it comes to swordplay. Ah, but Nabooru did always have a soft spot for handsome things like yourself.”

Link felt his cheeks burn red, and the old Gerudo woman chuckled a third time. 

“Relax, child. You should be thankful for your youth and vitality. I wish I had half your spunk. Now it’s time to put all of that energy to use in the trial that lies ahead. 

“Listen carefully to me, child, for I will only tell you this once. Should you forget what you’ve heard, that lapse may just end you. Once you pass through the door, you will enter the first of three rooms. That first room will test your power. The second room--which will open when you pass the obstacle in the first room--will test your wisdom. The third room will test--”

“My courage,” Link finished.

“Yes,” the woman said. She didn’t sound annoyed at having been interrupted, and this was a small relief to Link. “Keep this in mind, child. You will need to use those qualities in their respective rooms. Wisdom will not work when faced with a challenge of your power, and so on. Now then…” 

Link heard a new sound--the grating of shifting stone. He turned his head, but it was difficult to pinpoint the source of the sound. The emptiness Link felt around him indicated the room’s cavernous structure, and the sound echoed within it. Before he could begin to guess a direction, the sound ceased.

“A door is open,” the Gerudo Elder said. “You have fifteen seconds to find it before it closes again. Should that happen, you fail the trial. There will be no second chances. Fifteen… Fourteen…”

Link at once turned to his left and rushed in what he thought was the correct direction. After a few steps he ran straight into a stone column and bounced back with a cry of pain. 

“Fool!” the old woman snapped from her unseen position. “Listen to me, child. Stop whining and listen!”

Link dropped his hands from his throbbing nose and concentrated on the old woman’s voice.

“Why do Hylians like yourself have long ears, child?” the old woman asked.

Link was surprised by the question. He hadn’t heard it since his childhood school days, when he learned not only practical skills but also the myths and legends of Hyrule. Even so, Link was able to pull the answer from his head without hesitation. “Hylians have long ears to hear the voices of the Goddesses.”

“Good,” the old woman praised. “So use those ears, child. Listen for the way you should take. You are predestined to walk under the light of the Goddesses, and even underground their light illuminates your path, showing you the way to go.” 

“I’m blindfolded,” Link reminded the old woman.

A projectile--it felt like a shoe, and not all a soft-soled one--struck Link on the side of his head. “Don’t get smart, child!” the old woman warned while Link reeled from the sudden blow.

“All right, _all right!”_ Link snapped. He gave his head a shake and dropped his chin to his chest with a sigh. With slow movements so that the rustle of his rough-weaved Gerudo shirt didn’t distract him, Link turned his head from side to side to try and catch any sounds. He was surprised to find how much he could hear when he shut his mouth. Over his soft exhales, he heard the raspier breaths of the Gerudo Elder. She was not far off; to Link’s right. He pushed the sound away to the back of his mind and searched for other sounds. 

Link’s right ear twitched, and he turned his head a little more that way. The air against his right ear changed--as if a void had opened up. Could it be the open doorway? It was in the wrong position to be the staircase, so Link moved towards the void with slow, careful steps. He felt a shift in the air around him when the walls pressed in, and from behind came a few slow claps.

“Very good, child,” the old woman praised. “You may now continue to the first room.”

“Thanks--Hey…” Link turned towards the voice. “Wasn’t my fifteen seconds up a while ago?”

The old woman laughed. “That was a harmless trick of my own. You can’t begrudge me for a little fun, child!”

“Harmless, huh?” Link muttered, and he walked into the unseen hallway with the old woman’s gleeful laughter echoing behind him. “Tell that to my sore face.”

A short walk through the hall brought Link to a new room. He felt the walls draw away, and the sound of his footsteps changed. No sooner was he clear of the hall did a door shut behind him with a dull bang; the way back was closed off.

“Begin the first challenge,” called a voice--the old Gerudo woman’s voice. Before Link could voice his surprise, he heard something shift above him. Chains clacked ominously, and Link felt the air be disturbed when something huge began to drop at a rapid speed. 

Link could tell by the sound of wood against stone that whatever was falling, it was as big as the room, reaching all the walls. He imagined a false ceiling was dropping, and he wondered how he was supposed to avoid being crushed. He at once remembered the Gerudo Elder’s words. Power was being tested in this first room. 

Link braced himself for impact.

The false wooden ceiling hit Link’s shoulders and arms like a load of bricks. However, he had endured the playful tackles of Goron children, and this was similar. His legs bent under the weight, but he remained on his feet, and the ceiling stopped falling. Link heard the chains grow slack before a near-silence fell, punctuated by his labored breaths. 

Link had his arms stretched out to either side, supporting the ceiling along with his upper back and shoulders. His palms were turned up against the ceiling, and he could feel it was constructed of numerous planks of wood. There were gaps between the panels big enough to fit fingers through. After some thought, Link decided to try and break his way through the ceiling so as to get atop it and out of danger. 

The Gorons had taught Link how to punch powerfully from any distance, and while his stance was hardly ideal with a massive, false ceiling sitting atop his shoulders, he managed to draw an arm down a few inches and release a blow hard enough to splinter the wood above his hand. From there Link broke and ripped the wood apart. Several minutes and numerous cuts to his fingers later, Link had created a hole large enough to fit his body through. He sidestepped to the opening and quickly ducked in beneath the hole. The false ceiling fell around him, and he suffered only a shallow cut on his upper arm when a splintered board scraped across his skin.

Link heard the distinct sound of stone moving against stone. A door had opened to his left. 

“Very good, child,” the old woman’s voice praised while Link picked his blind way across the false ceiling towards the door. “The second challenge awaits you in the next room.”

Walls once more closed in around Link when he stepped through the open doorway. Another short walk, another door slamming closed, and he was in a new room. Link sensed this room was larger than the one he had just left. His footsteps echoed long and loud. 

The Gerudo Elder’s voice spoke up again from whatever unseen place she had taken up. “There are three bells in this room. You must strike them in the correct order, starting with the bell that rings longest to the bell that rings for the shortest time. However, you must move fast enough to strike the bells so that their sounds overlap. The bells will ring together now so that you can listen to them. After that, the only time you may strike a bell is when you are sure of the order. You have only one chance to guess the correct order.”

“Sounds easy enough,” Link muttered. With his sensitive ears he would easily be able to tell when each bell stopped ringing, and work from there. 

The old woman laughed. “You say that now.”

Link understood the ominous tone when the three bells began to ring. The sound was cacophonous as it echoed around the room, and it clashed harshly against Link’s ears. He cried out and covered them with his hands, but this dulled the sound only a little. 

Link wasn’t aware of when the bells finally tapered off because the ringing in his ears seemed to go on forever. Long after the last bell had stilled, he could still hear a faint buzz in his ears. Link dropped his hands and straightened out of the hunched position he had taken up under the onslaught of sound. The bells were quiet, and Link had no idea of how to go about finding the correct order. 

“Wisdom… Wisdom… This is supposed to test my wisdom,” Link muttered. He was finding this trial odd. Nabooru had mentioned he would be testing his relationship with the Master Sword through it, but so far Link hadn’t used the blade at all. And when he blindly found one of the three bells in the room, he realized there was a small mallet for striking the bell resting on a shelf below. The sword would not be needed here, either. 

Link set to examining the bell with his hands. It was typically shaped and situated in a small alcove in the wall. There were no markings that his fingers could find on the bell’s exterior, so Link swept a hand inside. He found the clapper hanging down the middle of the bell, and he was surprised by its weight. His hands next swept along the interior of the bell, and he discovered an indentation. Link felt along it and realized it was damage from the heavy clapper; there was a mirrored mark on the opposite, interior side. 

“Hmmm…” Link drew his hands out and moved off in search of another bell. He found one and, like the first, examined it. He found nothing save for similar indentations on the inside. These felt a lot deeper, however. Link made a mental note of that along with the bell’s rough position to his body before he moved off to find the third bell. Again, the same thing waited for him: a flawless bell save for indentations on the inside. The damage here was more than the first bell, but less than the second.

“So…” Link set to thinking over his discovery. “The bell with the most damage means… it’s rung more than the others. Or, in other words, longer than the others.” Link smiled to himself, proud of this deduction. “That means I should ring the bells from the most damaged down to the least damaged.”

Link took a few minutes to reaffirm the bells’ positions and order, and went through several dry runs of his blind path until he was confident in it. He had no idea how long the first bell would stay ringing, so he decided it would be best to move as quickly as possible.

“Okay…” Link turned towards the direction where he knew the first bell sat, and he walked up to it. He found talking to himself was oddly reassuring. He took up the mallet in preparation to strike the bell. The mallet wasn’t tethered. Link decided to take it with him after he had struck the first bell so that he didn’t waste time blindly fumbling for the other mallets. “Here we go…”

Link hit the bell hard with the mallet, and the force of his blow sent the bell swinging. The clapper started to bang against the bell, and Link rushed away, doing his best to ignore the harsh sound as he headed towards the second bell. Another hard hit, and now two clashing bells were assaulting his ears. Link pushed on, found the third bell, and struck it. 

The third bell rang once, and all three bells unnaturally fell silent. In the ringing absence of sound, Link heard a door open.

“Good,” the old woman’s voice said. “You passed the second challenge. Now on to the third and final room.”

“Almost there,” Link murmured to himself. He walked towards the opening he could sense, entered a short hall, and came out into a new room. The way closed behind him, and he jumped a little. This room was going to test courage. What would he have to face here?

“Listen to me, child,” the old woman’s voice said, and Link cocked his head towards the sound. “Sometimes the way is not clear. Sometimes the answer is buried. Be courageous and learn to willingly face danger, for the only way out of trouble is to first step into it.”

“Or to avoid it altogether,” Link said with a laugh.

“True,” the old woman relented. “However, your bloodline beckons trouble, so there is no avoiding it for you, I’m afraid.”

Link’s laughter tapered off at these sobering words. “Okay… So, what do I have to do this time?”

“I just told you, child,” the old woman said.

“What?” Link was confused. “No you didn’t. You didn’t tell me anything.”

The voice didn’t respond, and Link knew he was alone. With increasing worry, he thought back on all that the Gerudo Elder had said. There wasn’t much to go on. 

“All right, fine,” Link muttered. “I’ll figure it out. Let’s see if there’s a clue in the room.” He took a few steps forward with his arms stretched out, searching the space with tentative sweeps of his hands. However, it was Link’s feet that discovered something first. One moment the Hylian was walking on firm stone, and the next he had stepped into soft sand. 

Link gasped as his feet tripped into sand. It was quicksand, and panic bit at him when he sank into it chest-deep. But he knew about the strange phenomenon. Quicksand was a soupy mixture of sand and water, and Link knew it wasn’t dangerous so long as he took care. If he moved slowly and freed his legs little by little, he could reach solid ground again.

What Link didn’t count into his plan were the skeletal hands that grabbed hold of him.

Link screamed in surprise and terror. He could feel the individual bones of the hands that were now clinging to his legs. With a quick jerk they yanked him backwards and down under the surface of the quicksand. Link fought and managed to break the surface again, but in his struggle he disturbed the quicksand too much for escape, and the skeletal hands weren’t releasing their grips. 

Reaching for and using the Master Sword would be a waste of time when the enemies were under the quicksand. Link instead focused all of his efforts on kicking free of the hands. They broke easily under his flailing legs, and he attempted to head for firm ground again. 

More hands took hold of Link’s legs, and others grabbed at his shirt. He dropped his hand below the quicksand and tried to force them off. His arm got snagged. Link’s head sank below, broke up into the open air with a desperate gasp for breath, and sank yet again. When he reemerged after a lengthy struggle, he attempted to call for help, but the quicksand filled his mouth, and he was left sputtering and gagging. 

_There… There has to be… a way out… Some answer…_ Link’s mind flailed for a way to break free of the danger he had come to. What had the old woman said? 

_Sometimes the way is not clear. Sometimes the answer is buried. Be courageous and learn to willingly face danger, for the only way out of trouble is to first step into it._

_Does that mean…?_ Link’s chest tightened at the implication in the old woman’s words. But he knew he couldn’t fight off the skeletal hands forever, and he was no closer to getting out of the quicksand. So after taking a deep breath, Link did the opposite: he stopped his struggles and willingly allowed himself to be pulled under.

The quicksand encased Link entirely, and the skeletal hands tightened their thin grips in order to pull him deep down. Link had no idea where he was headed, but he suspected he was heading towards death. His blindfold was pulled off in the wake of his journey, but he kept his eyes shut tight against the thick, grainy soup that blocked out all of his senses. 

After a few seconds’ descent, Link dropped rapidly through open air. He hit a hard floor and grunted in pain. For a minute, he lay tense with his eyes closed. When he was confident there were no more skeletal hands, he fell to renewing the air in his lungs, and wiped the quicksand from his eyes before tentatively opening them. 

He was in a new room. It was dimly lit by a strange, shallow pool of water that gave off its own light. Link studied the pool with his good eye and gained his feet to approach it with wary steps. 

When Link had drawn within a foot of the pool’s low edge, a new light bloomed to life above the water. Link watched, eyes wide, as a winged woman took shape within the light. Her bare feet touched down onto the pool, and ripples spread out over its surface, accompanied by soft tones of sound. The tones soothed Link’s ringing ears, and the gentle breeze that wafted off of the woman dried his clothes and cleared the quicksand away. 

The woman was nude with long, blue-green hair, large gossamer wings on her back, and a youthful appearance. She smiled at Link, and he felt his heart soar. When she beckoned him forward, he stepped into the pool without hesitation. The scratch on his arm and the cuts on his fingers closed up the instant his boots touched the water. The soreness in his back muscles and arms was soothed away. 

“Hello, descendant of the ancient hero,” the woman greeted in a voice like honey. “Hello, Link. I see you have passed the three tests put forth to you. For this I am glad. You truly do your ancestors honor. I have high hopes you will save this dark world so that my people and I may return to a land of light.”

“Your people?” Link repeated, confused.

The woman bowed her head. “I am the Queen of the Fairies.”

“Fairies?” Link repeated. “Like Navi?”

“The one you call Navi is a daughter of mine,” the Fairy Queen confirmed. “I have many sons and daughters, and they once helped to maintain this land’s order. But the Evil King’s dark power has forced us into hiding for our very lives. That is why I am here, in this place, where the Gerudo protect the knowledge of my existence. To see me is a great honor, and it signifies the faith your friends have in you. Now hand me the Master Sword, Link.”

Link unsheathed the Master Sword, bowed, and offered it to the Fairy Queen. She took it in by the hilt in one hand and ran her other hand up and down the blade’s edge. 

“Yes… I see…” The Fairy Queen murmured. “This sword has grown much with you. It has seen bloodshed at your hand. It has also seen compassion on your part. And it recognizes now the power, wisdom, and courage you carry within you, for you so wonderfully displayed all three through the course of this trial. Courage is particularly strong within you, Link. The Master Sword sees that, and it willingly serves you--and only you--because of it.”

“I’m not that courageous,” Link murmured.

The Fairy Queen smiled gently at Link. “You will eventually see my words are truth.” She offered the Master Sword to Link, and he took it back and sheathed it. “It is time for you to go now, Link. You have passed your trial, and so I will no longer keep you. Good luck, descendant of the ancient hero.”

Link bowed his head in a gesture of gratitude. “Thank--”

The room faded into blackness.

Link lifted his head in confusion. “…you?”

“Me,” the Gerudo Elder confirmed from her seated position before Link. He was back in the very first room of the training grounds. The Hylian started in surprise, and the old woman laughed. “So you passed!” she exclaimed. “I knew you would! You are free to go now, Link. Go back and tell everyone of your success. I must stay and purify the training grounds, and then I will be up--just in case anyone questions your claim. Though looking at you now, I doubt anyone will question you. You look like a hero.”

“Thank you,” Link said, this time solely to the old woman. 

The Gerudo Elder nodded impatiently and shooed Link on towards the stairs leading back to the surface.

Link hurried up the stairs, desperate for sunlight; desperate to be free of the stuffy air; desperate to get away from any more trials, ordeals, spiritual journeys, or whatever other tests awaited him. He was glad to be free of the blindfold as well, for Navi’s enthusiasm and the admiring looks of the Gerudo when they laid eyes on him and heard of his success was payment enough for the stress of the close calls. 

Nabooru slung an arm over Link’s shoulders, and the Hylian was glad the Fairy Queen had healed his sore back muscles. “This calls for a celebration!” Nabooru announced, much to her people’s delight. “Our little hero is all grown up and has proven himself--at the very least--competent!” 

Link grumbled at the teasing comment, and Nabooru cast him a smile. She returned her attention to the collected Gerudo tribe. “Get cooking, girls! Tonight, we eat and drink to Link’s success!” 

With a cheer, the crowd broke apart under Nabooru’s order; each woman leaving to do her part in preparing for the evening’s celebration. This left Nabooru and Link standing alone with only Navi for company. The Gerudo leader turned and pressed close to the young Hylian. 

“If you tire of the normal old celebration,” she murmured, “you can come find me.” She smiled again when Link’s face flushed, and she walked away to join her fellow Gerudo in the preparations.

#

The light of several bonfires flickered against the stone walls, and echoes of song and laughter accompanied it. Both light and sound dimmed the further into the fortress Link walked. When he reached a closed wooden door deep in the labyrinth of halls and rooms, only dull torchlight was with him. His knuckles hesitated above the door. He didn’t think Nabooru would hear the gentle rap.

But she did, and she pulled open the door a few seconds later. She was dressed in light nightclothes, and Link relaxed. He had no idea how tense he was until that moment. He had expected her to open the door in the nude. His tongue still tripped him up, and after a few false starts he uttered a shaky laugh. “I don’t know why I’m here.”

“Okay,” Nabooru said in a quiet voice. She walked away, leaving the door open behind her.

Fingers flexing and shoulders once more tense, Link walked into the main room of Nabooru’s chambers. He made to close the door once he was clear of it, and it creaked. He pushed it shut with haste, and it slammed into its frame. From the unseen, adjoining bedroom, Nabooru laughed.

“I keep meaning to oil that,” Nabooru said when Link entered her bedroom. She was seated on the edge of a wide bed. Her hair was free of its ornaments, and she was combing it out. “Little things like that fall wayside with my queenly duties taking up most of my concentration.” She moved her hands and turned up her chin in a mocking show of regality.

“How are things with Ganondorf gone?” Link asked. He moved across the room and sunk onto the bed’s edge.

Nabooru shrugged. “It’s been years,” she reminded Link. “I’m used to it all now. And if it’s all the same to you, I’d rather not talk about him.”

“Oh. I’m sorry--” Link was silenced by Nabooru’s finger against his lips.

“I know,” she said, again in a quiet voice. “He meant a lot to me too, once.”

Link shucked off his boots and moved up the bed. Nabooru moved with him, and her reassuring weight settled atop his waist. Link watched her thin fingers undo the buttons of his shirt. The dark spread of her hands against his chest was lovely.

Nabooru chuckled. “You need a proper tan. Good thing we have a lot of sun around here in the desert.” Her fingers slipped up the length of Link’s scar before they hooked on something. “Oh, this is pretty.” She lifted a strung sapphire from Link’s chest.

Link felt his gut sink, and the blood left his face. He covered the latter with his hands and said through them, “Oh Goddesses, what am I doing? It’s Sheik all over again.”

“Who’s Sheik?” Nabooru asked.

“He’s this Sheikah I met when I was training with Impa. We became friends, and then… more, I guess.” Link sucked in a deep breath, and it slipped out of him as a hiss through his fingers. “But we couldn’t. Didn’t. It wouldn’t have been fair to Zelda.”

“Or you,” Nabooru tacked on. Link dropped his hands and looked up at her. “Because then you would have had to choose whose heart to break.”

“It sounds so logical when you explain it,” Link said, morose.

Nabooru chuckled and slipped off of Link’s waist to stretch out on his right. “I get it,” she assured him. “You feel as if you would betray her.” 

Link nodded once, his mouth set in a grim line. 

“It’s a noble thought, Link, and I admire you for it,” Nabooru told him, and she saw him relax. “I was just extending the offer as a friend.” She raised her head up onto a propped arm. “But listen. This world sinks into darkness a little more every day. Do you want to waste whatever time you may have with Zelda trying to figure out how the two of you should fit together? You never know what could happen, Link. You might only have one night with her.” 

“What are you suggesting?” Link asked with equal parts wariness and curiosity.

“Nothing much,” Nabooru assured him. “But I can show you some things that will make whatever time you have with Zelda the best for both of you. We don’t have to go far at all, and we definitely don’t have to sleep together, if you don’t want that.”

“I don’t,” Link admitted, somewhat shamed.

“It’s okay,” Nabooru said. “Believe it or not, queenhood has its perks. I’m not lacking in the attention department.” She poked Link’s side, and he flinched with a soft laugh. “Let me turn down the lamp.”

The room faded into darkness seconds later, and Link felt Nabooru’s weight return to the bed. His thoughts had filled with Zelda’s face and voice, and he didn’t know there were tears in his eyes until he felt Nabooru’s finger wipe away a wet trail from his cheek and replaced it with a comforting kiss.

#

The chair flew by Koume’s shoulder, missing it by inches, but she didn’t flinch. She and her sister looked on as their son turned over the furniture of his study, punched holes into the walls, and generally threw what could only be described as a tantrum.

 _“It’s all your fault!”_ Ganondorf raged, and his mothers passed exasperated looks between themselves. “I could be living a life in the desert! I could have a wife--daughters! I could be in the king’s favor! The king could still be _alive!”_ He collapsed into the remaining chair and dropped his forehead into his hand. “And Darcel. And the people in town.”

“And Link?” Koume suggested in a hopeful voice.

“You did kill him at the temple, didn’t you?” Kotake pressed.

“You were there,” Ganondorf almost whispered. “You know what happened. You know I couldn’t kill him.”

His mothers asked in unison, “What are you talking about?”

Ganondorf lifted his head, and now the rage was replaced by confusion. “What are _you_ talking about?” he returned. “You were there! You were egging me on just as much as this!” He raised his right hand where his Triforce of Power glimmered. It had shined all through his fit of anger.

Again, Koume and Kotake passed a look--this time one of concern. “Ganondorf, we were not there,” Koume told her son.

“We were leading an assault against rebels in the south,” Kotake reminded him.

“What? But…” Ganondorf clenched his eyes shut. “I heard you.” His right hand tightened into a fist, and the golden glow there strengthened.

“If we were there, the child would be dead,” Koume pointed out in a cold voice.

“Once again, you’ve managed a half-job,” Kotake said with a sniff of disapproval.

“If the child breaches this castle, it will be your fault.”

“We should have left things in the hands of that Wind Mage.”

The golden glow spiked, and Ganondorf gained his feet in a blur of movement. _“Get out!”_ he roared, and his mothers quailed. A dark aura had enveloped their son. His eyes glowed, and his steps sparked lightning when he took three steps towards the witches. _“Get out!”_

The witches vanished in twin bursts of light.

It took a minute after his mothers’ departure for Ganondorf to quell the aura around him. He tried to focus on calming thoughts, but the voice of the Triforce of Power persisted through his efforts. It told him to break more things. It told him to wreak more havoc. It told him to find the child and rip his guts out barehanded.

Ganondorf shuddered, and with a feeling like being kicked in the chest, the aura was sucked back into his chest. He gasped in its wake, and tears came to his eyes.

 _Pathetic,_ Koume remarked with a _tsk_ of her tongue.

 _You should savor it, Ganondorf,_ Kotake added.

Ganondorf clapped his hands against his temples. _“Get out of my head!”_ he roared. The Triforce of Power sparked once, but its voice faded, as did those of Koume and Kotake. 

For now.

#

The Gerudo fortress was quiet when the sun rose over the desert horizon. Most of the Gerudo were sleeping off the effects of their night-long celebration. The food was heavy, the drink heavier, and the song and dancing had made the cliffs echo with sound for hours on end. 

Link sat on the edge of Nabooru’s bed, his eyes closed and his head bowed slightly forward, while his ears took in the early-morning silence. He felt a bare body press close to his back. Thin, delicate fingers took hold of his right earlobe.

“Ready?”

“Tell me again why the Gerudo mark of manhood is the same as Hyrule’s?” Link asked.

“Where do you think Hyrule got the idea?” Nabooru retorted, and Link laughed softly. 

“Fair enough. Go for it.”

Link felt something cold and sharp press against his ear, followed by a painful pinch. He didn’t wince or grimace; and he remained obediently still while Nabooru fitted an earring into the new hole in his right earlobe. The pinch was repeated on his left lobe, and while his ears warmed up from the mild assault, Nabooru handed over a small hand mirror. 

“The redness and swelling will go down in a few days,” Nabooru promised while Link admired the blue hoops in his ears. “I picked ones that matched your eyes.”

“And this,” Link added, indicating the sapphire necklace that hung down the middle of his bare chest. 

Nabooru smiled in the mirror. “You’ll see her soon, Link. I’m sure of it.”

“I hope so,” Link said. “Otherwise all of those tips will be for nothing.” He laughed when Nabooru gently smacked him over the head, only to ruffle his messy, blonde locks. 

“Come on, hero, time for a bath and a change of clothes. I have to rouse my tribe from their stupors, so take your time. I’m sure I’ll be a while.”

“And after that?” Link questioned.

“After that,” Nabooru picked up as she climbed off of the bed. “It will be time for some more training.”

Link groaned and bowed his head in defeat. Nabooru winced in playful pity. “Sorry, but if Shade found out I let you slip in your studies… Well, I don’t want to think about it.”

Link lifted his head while Nabooru started a search for a slip or wrap with which to cover herself. “Hey, Nabooru? Do you think… I mean, is Zelda _really_ okay?”

Nabooru looked back at Link with a firm nod. “I know she is, Link. Don’t worry, all right? Just focus on being the best you can be, and you’ll see her soon enough.” She cast an encouraging smile at Link, and he nodded. 

When Nabooru left the room, Link’s smile dropped along with his bowed head. _Just a little longer,_ he told himself. _Soon I’ll see her smile and hear her voice again, and then I won’t be so afraid._

Link clutched at his sapphire, and pressed it against his chest when he recalled the broken rib and the pain Ganondorf had afflicted on him. He knew he had to be strong for Zelda as well as Hyrule, but there was a lot less drive to be strong when so many of his loved ones were missing from his life.


	24. Recognition

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Link completes his training at the Gerudo Fortress and returns to Kakariko Village. But trouble is waiting for him there.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for your continued support!
> 
> We're soon getting to the nitty-gritty, but first there's a bit of a set-up chapter, and that's this one. 
> 
> Please enjoy, thank you! Feedback and kudos are appreciated!

# In the Shade of a Hero

### Recognition

Vaati rolled his eyes and hung his head when his ears picked up the distant sounds of rage. “There he goes again.” The manacles around Vaati’s wrists jangled when he pushed himself from the wall to which he was fastened. His nose lifted towards the low ceiling of the dungeon, and he sucked in a deep breath. Behind the dankness and mold, a bright whiff of evil tainted the air. Vaati licked his lips and relaxed back against the wall. 

“I believe I’ve idled enough,” the Wind Mage said. “He’s almost going to pop, and if I wait any longer, he’ll take away all of my fun. Gods, it’s going to feel good to shuck off this pathetic form once and for all.”

_Pico ropicipo poci rocipi?_

“Don’t you dare speak to me in that jabbering Minish!” Vaati snapped at the empty air to his right. “And as if I care what happens to you when this body goes! You’re nothing but a mad ghost.”

The young voice in Vaati’s head fell silent, but Vaati could sense its resentment, and he laughed. “Ah, I see. You’re thinking about your little hero, aren’t you? You think he’s going to stop me? You think he’s going to save you? Better dash those hopes, child. He can’t save you if he’s dead.”

_Ricopi ripico._

Vaati sneered. “I’ll remember that when you go even madder at the sight of your precious hero’s broken body.” He shook his wrists within their manacles and felt his power stir. It was stronger now, having fed on the strong, corrupted will Ganondorf’s Triforce of Power exuded over the castle. He grinned at the feel of it in his skin. “It’s time.”

An explosion rocked Ganondorf’s castle, and he lifted his eyes from a broken table at his feet. The walls shook and cracked, and many of his monsters scrambled in panic through the halls. The tremors subsided in a relatively short time, leaving the entire dark residency on edge and wondering what had happened. 

Ganondorf was the first to the scene of the explosion’s source. He took in the crumbled walls, bent steel bars, and scattered remains of various monster, and he realized he had overestimated himself somewhere. 

Or underestimated someone else.

#

The air whistled. The sound ended with a dull _thunk_ of stone against wood, and the rapid clops of a Gerudian stallion’s hooves slowed to a stop. The horse snorted, clearing the dust from his nose, and saddle leather creaked when his Hylian rider dismounted.

“How was that?” Link asked once his feet had touched down onto hard-packed desert ground.

Soreya was amazed. 

Twenty perfect bull’s-eyes. 

Not an arrow wasted. 

From the back of a horse at full gallop. 

With a bad right eye.

The Gerudo snubbed her nose and remarked, offhandedly, “I could do better.”

Link grinned. He knew the real praise hidden under Soreya’s façade. He could see she was impressed just by looking into her expressive eyes. “I guess all of that practice paid off,” Link said. He fingered the bowstring. “It helped that Nabooru was able to arrange for my bow to be delivered from Lon Lon Ranch. I don’t think I would have the same luck with an unfamiliar weapon.”

“Does it mean a lot to you?” Soreya asked.

Link nodded, smiling. “Yes. A friend of mine gave it to me.”

“Well then…” Soreya walked over to a crate sitting in the shade of a nearby lean-to. From it she pulled out a high-quality quiver that she handed over to Link. “Take this to go with your bow. It means a lot to me, but I want you to have it. I’ve never seen such great shooting outside of my own skills, so you more than deserve it.” Before Link could attempt to humbly refuse--and he was preparing to, Soreya knew that much--the Gerudo thrust her prized quiver into the Hylian’s hands. 

Link stuttered, realized any protest would fall on deaf ears, and relented, “Okay, I’ll take it. Thank you. It’s through your teachings that I was able to get this good, and I’ll treasure this quiver as much as your lessons.”

Soreya nodded, spun Link around, and pushed him on towards the fortress that sat below the archery range. “All right, enough flattering. Now go on. You did swell today, Link. You deserve a break.”

“A break?” Link repeated. He slung his new quiver over his shoulder and started down the dusty slope towards the fortress. “I haven’t had one of those in five days. I doubt today will be any different.” 

But when Link arrived to the fortress’s main body, he found Nabooru not in her usual chipper mood, ready to push the Hylian into several hours’ worth of hard swordplay and acrobatic exercises--both with and without a blindfold. Instead, she was seated in the shade of a high wall with a face closed in thought. When Link stopped to greet her, she looked up at him with a distracted smile on her lips.

“Link. Hey. Listen… It’s time for you to go.”

“Go?” Link repeated, confused. “What do you mean?”

Nabooru stood up from her stool and smiled with a little more gusto. “I mean your work here is done, silly. We’ve taught you everything we know, and you’ve learned quickly with amazing results. Now your journey has to continue outside these barren lands where your abilities will soon be put to the final test. You’ll need to gather every ounce of power, wisdom, and courage that you’ve gained through your lessons and experiences in order to bring down the Evil King who is taking over Hyrule.”

“Ganondorf,” Link murmured. A frown creased his brow, and he studied the grit under his boots. “He was once a friend to me. I… I don’t know, Nabooru. Whenever I think about what I have to do…” Link shook his head and finished, “It’s Darcel all over again.”

Nabooru reached out to take one of Link’s hands in both of hers. “If you keep trying to remember the enemy for what he may have been, you will never see him for what he is now. Many lives are depending upon you, Link.”

“But why me?” Link asked, more to himself.

“Because you are the descendant of--”

Link lifted his head and took a step back. His hand dropped out of Nabooru’s grip, and she faltered in her words.

“No,” Link said. “That’s not what I meant. Darcel was a descendant of heroes, too. He was my twin brother. Why was he condemned to a life of darkness when he could have been fighting against Ganondorf by my side? Where is the fairness in that? What were the Goddesses thinking?”

Nabooru closed her eyes for a moment. When she opened them, it was with a sigh. She chose her words carefully. “Link, some questions are better left unanswered. Things happen for a reason. That reason isn’t always a good reason, but you must accept things as they are and move on.”

“No, I _can’t_ accept that,” Link snapped. “I don’t care what it takes, Nabooru. Even if I have to wait until I leave this world so that I can stand before the Goddesses themselves and ask them directly, I _will_ get my answers.”

Nabooru’s eyes darkened, and she pursed her lips. With a small shake of her head she remarked, “You’re just as adamant as he was back then. It’s obvious he’s been an influence on you.”

“Who?” Link questioned. “Ganondorf?”

Nabooru blinked in surprise. “Actually, yes. He was the same way. But I was talking about Shade. He’s waiting for you, you know--on the border between the valley and Hyrule Field. I wouldn’t keep him waiting for much longer.”

“Why didn’t he come here to meet me?” Link asked.

Nabooru laughed. To Link, it sounded forced. “You know how he is, Link. Just get your stuff together, find Navi, and get out of here.”

Link nodded and disappeared into the fortress to collect his minimal belongings. He knew in a few minutes it would be reluctant goodbyes and sad farewells when he left the fortress and the Gerudo tribe, so he tried to hold onto the small happiness in his chest for as long as he could; and he prayed a larger happiness would be found once all of his trials were behind him.

#

Hearing the growing sound of boot heels against hard stone and sand, Shade glanced up from the cigarette he was attempting to light with a faltering match. He paused in the act when his eyes fell on Link’s not-too-distant form approaching the desert border. The match cupped in the swordsman’s hands went out without his notice while he took in the young Hylian.

_On the Goddesses, he looks just like Ganondorf did back then._

Link was clad in fresh clothes of Gerudian design, and his uncovered hair was tossed by the breeze. His skin was handsomely tanned from his days spent in the dessert sun, and he walked with a confidence Shade had not seen before in him. Earrings of sapphire blue glinted in the sun with each step the Hylian took.

_His red hair was getting a little long, and the wind tossed it back and forth around his ears. His dark complexion glowed with health from days spent in the sun, and his newly pierced ears glinted whenever his gold earrings caught the sun._

_“Look, look! I’ve been marked as--”_

“--a man.”

Shade jerked out of his thoughts and focused on Link. The Hylian was now standing to Shade’s left, stroking Epona’s head. The mare had missed her master, and she fell to milking him for every bit of attention possible. But Link’s focus, for the most part, was on Shade.

“I said the Gerudo marked me as a man,” Link repeated upon noticing Shade’s perplexed look. He tossed his head a bit to accentuate the earrings hanging from his ears. “Nabooru pierced them.”

“Is that so?” Shade said.

“Yes,” Link said before pausing. He appeared to be waiting for something. His blue eyes darkened when the silence stretched between him and Shade, and he finally prompted, “Well? Don’t you have anything to say?”

“Such as?” Shade asked.

A furious blush touched the tops of Link’s cheeks, and he snapped out, “A congratulations, perhaps? Even just a ‘well done’ would do! I’ve worked my ass off these past weeks, all for this one moment to finally be seen as someone more than a child, _and you can’t even tell me ‘good job’?”_

The swordsman struck a new match to life and lit the cigarette that still hung from his lips. Once the tobacco was burning, he regarded Link with one eye squinted against the smoke. “What’s got you strung up so tight?”

Link gave no direct reply. Instead, with a small exclamation of rage, he swung himself up into Epona’s saddle and made to gallop away.

Shade reached out and snatched up Epona’s swinging reins before Link could urge the mare onward. Epona was dragged flush against Daze, and Link’s knee bumped against Shade’s. The young Hylian recoiled from his master, but Shade’s fist snatched at Link’s blonde locks, seizing them in an iron grip. 

Link grimaced when his head was twisted to the left. Shade’s face fell behind a veil of shadows and dim light, and Link struggled to straighten his head so that he could get his better left eye on the swordsman. But no sooner was his head twisted left, it was yanked back to the right. Link’s good eye focused and glared at his mentor.

“You look stronger,” Shade was forced to admit.

Link jerked his head out of Shade’s hand. He had enough of feeling like an animal on display. “I _am_ stronger,” he argued. “Both in body and spirit.”

Shade scoffed, shook his head, and clicked his tongue at Daze. The mare picked up a path, heading for Kakariko Village. “Let’s go, boy,” Shade called when Link didn’t follow. “We have some things to discuss now that you’re ready to face your destiny.”

“You mean the destiny I never agreed to?” Link asked in a hard tone. “I hope you have some answers for me.”

Shade paused his horse and sighed with a hint of irritation. “None I’m going to easily give to a child.”

“I am _not_ a--”

“Do you want to see her?”

Link cut off the argument he had ready. He knew what Shade meant by _her._

Shade took his apprentice’s silence as a sign of consent. “Let’s go to Kakariko.”

Link’s nod was eager. “Yeah. Okay. Yeah, let’s go.” All traces of his earlier animosity were gone. He nudged Epona forward, and she began to shadow Daze across the field. It took all of Link’s self-control to stop himself from spurring his horse to a neck-breaking speed. 

Shade looked back once in surprise. He had expected to see Link pass him by in a blur. The swordsman’s eye caught a glimpse of sunlight glancing off of Link’s back, and he asked, “Is that a new shield?”

Link’s head, bowed down in thought, jerked up. He dropped Epona’s reins and reached back to bring the mirror shield into full view. “The goddess in the Spirit Temple granted it to me,” he explained while Shade studied the shield. “I was sent there on a spiritual mission to reflect and… and to see things as they are.”

“And what did you see?” Shade asked.

Link’s brow furrowed. “All of this time, I kept thinking it wouldn’t come down to a fight,” he said. “I guess I thought I could talk Ganondorf out of what he’s trying to do--just like I thought I could talk Darcel out of his actions. 

“But in the Spirit Temple, Ganondorf was waiting for me. I didn’t see him--he was on my bad side. He could have left me alone, and I would have never known he was there. Instead, he attacked me. He was prepared to kill me, too, if fate… or a Goddess… or whatever hadn’t stepped in to deter him.”

“So now you realize there is no hope for a peaceful end to all of this,” Shade said. “It will come down to battle. You _knew_ this, Link. That’s why everyone’s been preparing you for the fight. Why are you so surprised?”

“I’m not surprised, I’m _annoyed,”_ Link corrected. His earlier anger began to emerge again in his tone, and he continued, “I’m annoyed that I can’t seem to shake this destiny that hangs over me like a guillotine.”

“It’s not a guillotine, Link. It’s an honor to carry such a weight--”

“Well lately the weight has been pretty damn heavy, and I’m tired of carrying it.” Link shouldered his shield and fixed a glare down at his saddle horn. “I just want to know why. That’s all. Why me when I was little different from my brother? We were _twins,_ for the Goddesses’ sakes.”

Shade didn’t reply. He instead turned his eyes forward and returned to marking his mare’s path across Hyrule Field.

#

Zelda stood up with such abruptness that her chair toppled over. Impa barely blinked, but she couldn’t meet the princess’s altered eyes. “It’s a lie,” Zelda insisted in Sheik’s voice.

“I don’t lie,” Impa nearly whispered.

“That’s not true! If what you’re saying is the real truth, then that means you’ve been lying this whole time!”

“No.” Impa shook her head. “I’ve simply withheld information.”

“To protect me?” Zelda guessed in a harsh voice.

“Yes,” Impa replied. “To protect both you and Link. I’m sorry,” she added, and her voice betrayed her sorrow.

Zelda could only cry out and fall to pacing. After a few strides back and forth, she asked, “Does Link know?” 

“Shade should tell him soon, if he hasn’t already.”

“And you think Link’s going to just accept it? After what happened to Darcel?”

“Of course not.” Impa’s fingers laced together. She didn’t want Zelda to see the tremble in them. “But it is ultimately his choice in what happens. Our fates lie within his ability to let his past go.”

Zelda resumed pacing. Impa allowed her the quiet until the princess once more broke it. “What’s going to happen to him? When this is all over--when he succeeds--what then?”

“That I don’t know,” Impa said in a heavy voice. “We Sages don’t know everything. The Goddesses still have their secrets.”

Zelda scoffed. She couldn’t hear anymore. She grabbed her lyre on the way out Impa’s house.

Within Kakariko Village, Zelda found a quiet corner where a crate sat. There, she took a seat and fell to distracting herself with music. But her fingers plucked with no enthusiasm, and soon the notes tapered off. Zelda sighed and leaned her back against the house behind her. _Just a little longer,_ she told herself. _Soon, I can cast aside this disguise and join Link’s side in the fight. And I’ll help him shoulder his destiny._

Zelda lifted her head when she heard a soft sniffling. She hopped off of the crate and followed the sound around the house to the windmill. At the bottom of a ladder, her ears picked up the sniffling and soft crying coming from high above, behind the windmill. It sounded like a child. She placed her lyre into its sling on her hips and climbed the ladder.

#

Kakariko Village was busier than Link remembered from weeks ago. It was a good sort of busy--not the frantic shifting of worried villagers, but the energetic bustling of active, happy people. A new building was completed, and the foundations of another were started. The air was clear of the evil veil that lay over every part of Hyrule Field. In short, there was warmth here that not even the sun over the Gerudo Valley could duplicate. 

Link was changed from his training, and coupled with his foreign clothes and tan he was almost unrecognizable to the villagers. Even Impa had to do a double-take when Link walked into her house and greeted her. Her eyes moved up and down the young Hylian in faint confusion before her face lit up with a smile. She swept Link up into a tight hug; crushing his face uncomfortably against her chest. 

Shade laughed while Link struggled to remove himself from the constricting grip. “Easy, Impa,” the swordsman begged. “We need him alive for a little longer. Once Link defeats Ganondorf, he’s all yours.”

Impa released Link and took a step back. Her hands reached up and cupped his head on either side of his neck. “And you _will_ defeat him, won’t you?” the Sheikah said. “I see great strength in you, Link--so much more than before. You are destined to bring peace back to this land.”

“Thank you, Impa,” Link said. He smiled, but the expression lasted only a moment before his eyes darkened with anger. “It’s good to know _someone_ can see everything I’ve accomplished.”

Impa’s eyes snapped up from Link’s hard expression to look at Shade. She marked the thin line of Shade’s frown and the mirrored anger in his eyes. “Link,” Impa said, and she dropped her head to look down into Link’s questioning face. “We can delay our conversation for now. I want to speak to Shade alone… and I think someone is waiting for you outside.”

Link’s eyes widened for the brief moment it took him to understand Impa’s meaning. He was out of the Sheikah’s house like a bolt of light. He neglected to close the door in his wake; it swung back with a bang against the wall and rebounded in a slower arc. 

Impa walked to the front door and pushed it fully closed. Once the doorjamb was set, she turned around and fixed a hard look onto Shade. “More than anything else, Link craves your recognition. So why are you refusing to give him what he needs?”

“I think he craves the princess’s recognition a little more,” Shade joked.

Impa was in no mood for levity. She stalked over to Shade and took up a position in front of him. Her gaze was as unflinching as steel. “I see what it is now,” Impa said after studying Shade for a moment. “I know why you won’t recognize Link as the hero he obviously is. It’s because he’s in a position to accomplish what you never could.”

“Brilliant deduction,” Shade growled. “But you’re wrong. If that was how I felt, then I would be no better than anyone who wants to see Hyrule burn to the ground.”

“But it _is_ how you feel,” Impa insisted. “You want to see him fail. You want to prove to the Goddesses that all of this effort was for naught because it didn’t change anything.”

“That is not it at all!” Shade snapped. 

_“Then tell Link what he needs to hear!”_ Impa shouted back. She closed her eyes and took a calming breath. After relaxing her body, she began again in a softer tone, “When Link stands before Ganondorf in the final battle, he will need to know everyone is supporting him. He will need to know he has the faith of every life he’s touched, and that the continuation of those lives rests in his capable hands. How do you think he’s going to feel if he knows you consider him less-than-best? One second’s hesitation due to doubt could be the difference between a blade missing him by inches, or burying its edge into his neck.”

“That’s not going to happen,” Shade said. “Link won’t go up against Ganondorf. The man was once his friend. It… It will be the same result as before.”

“Not if you tell him what he wants to hear and what he needs to know,” Impa continued to argue. “Tell him _everything,_ Shade. He’s already asking questions, isn’t he? He wants to know why the Goddesses chose him over his brother. He wants to know why this destiny fell on him.”

But Shade shook his head and took two steps back from Impa. “He’ll hate me. No, I can’t do that. It will ruin him, and he won’t do what has to be done.”

“According to you he won’t succeed anyway, so what’s the loss?” Impa pressed. “You must recognize him, or you doom us all.”

The panic that had taken over Shade’s eyes at Impa’s suggestion hardened to anger. In an instant he was once again chest-to-chest with the Sheikah woman. _“When Link has proven to me that he is a man strong enough to take up the responsibility placed on him, only then will I give him the recognition he deserves!”_ With one final, heated look, the swordsman stormed out of Impa’s house, leaving a ringing silence in the wake of his shouts. 

Impa cast her eyes to the side in disappointment. Her gaze caught the shape of a person, and she started back in surprise, wondering who could have snuck up on her. But it was only her reflection cast in the face of Link’s mirror shield. The shield and Master Sword were placed along the wall not long after Link had walked through the door. Impa studied the mirror shield for a moment. She knew of its magical properties, and a plan was forming in her head. 

“Well, Shade…” Impa murmured as she walked over to the shield. She picked it up and inspected its flawless design. “If you won’t willingly take any action, then I suppose I will have to force you to explain everything.” Impa bowed her head for a moment and whispered, “I’m sorry, Link.”

The heat of her breath fogged a portion of the mirror shield’s face for a few seconds. Once it had cleared, images took shape across the glass.

#

Link rushed outside and ran through Kakariko Village, looking for any signs of Zelda. He was so focused on his search, his ears never picked up the raised voices of Impa’s and Shade’s argument as it heated up. But the ears did hook onto a snatch of plucked notes in the air. Link turned his head up, following the sound, and his eyes landed on the windmill that sat over the village. That was Sheik’s lyre. Perhaps he would know where to find Zelda. 

Link used the power of Farore’s Wind to teleport onto the hill that the windmill was built into. His feet landed on a mild slope of soft grass behind the building, and he cast his eyes around for the Sheikah man even as he called out, “Sheik! I’m back! Hey, have you seen--”

There was someone leaning against the wall of the windmill, plucking at the lyre, but it was not Sheik.

“…Zelda?”

Long hair was tossed back, and a soft laugh greeted Link. “Surprised, are you?”

Link took a step back. He reached for his blade, but it was gone--back at Impa’s house, along with his other equipment.

“Yes, I’ve seen Zelda,” Vaati replied. He dragged long nails along the strings of the lyre, and it screeched with a discordant flurry of notes. While Link’s ears rang harshly with the unnatural sound, Vaati laughed. “Foolish child. Did you think you could hide her forever?” The Wind Mage’s grin momentarily faltered. “I should have gone with my gut instinct when I saw her disguise.”

“Disguise?” Link repeated, his lips numb. “Zelda was… disguised? She was _here?”_

Vaati’s anger cleared, and he laughed again with more enthusiasm. “Oh, it’s too rich!” he remarked between chuckles. “What did you say to me back then? That if Zelda was in Kakariko Village you would be the first to know? Well, child, she was right under your nose all along.” And with that said, Vaati snapped the lyre’s strings with a last stroke of his nails. They broke with numerous twangs, and the Wind Mage tossed the ruined lyre at Link’s feet.

Link’s mind fell into a whirl of thoughts and emotions. Zelda was Sheik all along? But why had she never come forward and told him? Was it for her protection from villains like Vaati? Link fixed lived eyes on the Wind Mage and asked in a low, dangerous voice, “What have you done with her?”

“Nothing yet,” Vaati said. “That’s the truth. I have plans for her, of course, but before I go about them…” Vaati met Link’s furious blue gaze with his own eager red eyes. “I have to take care of you.”


	25. Proxy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Link takes on Vaati in a final showdown with the Wind Mage, but his victory is bittersweet in the wake of a truth.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for your continued support!
> 
> I think I'm weak at battle scenes, which doesn't exactly help that I love to write _Zelda_ fanfics, haha... I hope this chapter comes across well enough!
> 
> Thank you, and please enjoy!

# In the Shade of a Hero

### Proxy

Vaati had taken Zelda--or so he claimed. Link had no reason to doubt the Wind Mage, which was why he was going to do everything possible to get Zelda back. Unfortunately, in his current condition he was ill prepared to fight. He was defenseless and without a blade, and already a change was coming over Vaati. The Wind Mage’s skin was darkening towards black, and his red eyes were stretching larger across his face to join together. His lips spread out, and his teeth sharpened and lengthened; a long forked tongue slipped out to lick the air when the mouth broadened into a grin.

Whatever Vaati was becoming, it was monstrous in form. When his body began to expand and lengthen into a larger mass, Link decided it was time to collect some means of defense. He tore his eyes from the Wind Mage--he was growing into a bat-like creature, huge and round--and bolted for the edge of the hill. Impa’s house wasn’t too far away. If Link could get inside to his weapons--

A strong gust of wind knocked Link down to the ground. He barely had time to suck in a gasp of surprise before he sensed something moving above him, hurtling downwards. He rolled to the side, and the clawed appendage that would have crushed him slammed harmlessly into the dirt. An enraged screech filled the air.

Link lifted his head, shook dirt from his hair, and looked over his shoulder. Vaati was unrecognizable. Above the ground where an effeminate, dangerous man once stood there was now an even more dangerous and demonic-looking monster. It was aloft in the air by means of two sets of leathery wings. Its body was round and entirely black with two clawed arms, a single eye, and a wide, sharp-toothed mouth. That mouth spread into a hungry smile, and another screech left the creature. 

Link gained his feet and took two steps back. “Have you lost so much of yourself that you’re reduced to this?” he asked in a voice that shook slightly. “A bloated bat incapable of speech?”

“I speak well enough,” Vaati said. In his new form, the words hissed at the edges and cut the air like knives. Link winced when the sound of them filled his ears. “Well enough to say: _Die, play-hero.”_

One of Vaati’s clawed arms whipped out towards Link. He back-flipped out of range of the attack in the nick of time, but it was close. Vaati was a lot faster than his large form suggested.

“Stand still, child, and I promise a quick death!” Vaati screeched. 

Link avoided another claw, turned around, and once more started for the edge of the hill on foot, being too panicked to remember the sign for Farore’s Wind. In the village’s heart, people were fleeing with screams on their lips. Link saw Impa emerge from her home. Her startled eyes found him, and she shouted a warning. The distance made the words indiscernible, but Link had no need for specifics; he could see the shadow falling over him. He put on a burst of speed that carried him back out into sunlight, and he jumped over the edge of the hill to the ground below.

A claw intercepted Link mid-jump. It seized hold of him by a leg and whipped him through the air before releasing him. A brief image of dark roof tiles filled Link’s vision, and he felt his body crash painfully through a roof. He struck a carpeted floor and blacked out with a victorious screech in his ears. 

When Link came around, he opened his eyes onto patchy sunlight and dust motes. Someone was frantically calling his name beyond the rubble around him. Link lifted his head, and a sharp hand slapped him across the face.

“Wake up, Link! Come on, get on your feet! Quickly! Is anything broken?”

That was Impa. Link didn’t waste time with responding. Her voice reminded him of Zelda, and at once the pain from his fall through the roof was gone. Link’s body surged with adrenaline. He scrambled to his feet to collect the bow, mirror shield, and Master Sword that rested not far off. After securing them on his person, he reached into his collar and pulled out a struggling fairy. 

“Keep an eye on her,” Link said as he forced Navi into Impa’s startled hands. He was off towards the door the next second.

Navi wanted to join her partner in battle, but Impa cupped her hands firmly around the fairy. As Link headed towards the door, the Sheikah called out, “Link, wait! He’s too strong for you to face alone! Let me--”

_“He has Zelda!”_ Link cut in. His words were sharp and clear, his blue eyes burned bright with anger, and his body was tense; eager for retribution. In the wake of this, Impa fell silent. “I’m getting her back,” Link continued. “Impa, work on evacuating the villagers. Lead them to Death Mountain Trail where the rocks can hide them from Vaati.”

Impa managed one jerky nod. “Yes, of course. Link… Be careful.”

Link made no promises. He ran out the door, shield and sword flashing in the sunlight--sunlight that was blocked when Vaati moved over Link, bathing him in shadow.

“You surely can’t hope to defeat me with that toothpick?” Vaati taunted.

“I have other tricks,” Link assured the demonic beast. Vaati’s single eye made for a large target, and Link wasted no time in casting a ball of Din’s Fire towards it. The attack sped through the air and hit Vaati square in the eye. 

The demon screeched in pain and retreated higher into the air with a powerful beat of his wings. His eye turned red with irritation, and when it fixed on Link again, it narrowed in anger. “You won’t be trying that trick again, child,” Vaati hissed.

A beam of dark magic shot out of the eye towards Link, who in his surprise failed to dodge or defend himself. The beam hit him in the chest, and a crippling pain lit up over Link’s body. It passed quickly, but it left him feeling drained of energy. A jarring jolt in his gut told him that his magic was temporarily cut off. 

Vaati turned his gaze onto the village, and a second beam of magic shot out of his eye. This one was a bright red, and it lit every building it hit with fire. Renewed screams of terror filled the air while the fleeing villagers watched their homes burn. 

Link could see that Impa was attempting to protect the villagers and lead them to safer ground, but she was having a hard time convincing the panicked people. Link had to distract Vaati; he had to keep the demon occupied so that the villagers could make their escapes. And, with any luck, he would be able to figure out a way to defeat the monster.

Link whistled shrilly to attract Vaati’s attention, adding a taunt. _“Hey, you overgrown cucco! Since when does Ganondorf let his lapdog run around unleashed?”_

The demon whirled in the air, and with a hissing screech it swooped low at the Hylian with claws outstretched. Link rolled out of the way, and Vaati sailed past him. The demon turned in the air and made to swoop again. He was halfway to Link when he saw the arrow aimed for his eye.

Link released his hold on the taut bowstring, and his arrow flew straight and true to strike Vaati’s eye. The beast screeched in pain and shut his eyelid. Blindly he spun around in the air, struck a building, and fell to the ground with an earth-shaking crash. 

Link was already running towards Vaati, his sword in hand to strike at the downed beast. Vaati was thrashing on the ground and attempting to remove the arrow from his eye. One of his claws finally knocked it loose, and Vaati opened his eye in time for it to receive a harsh blow from the Master Sword. Blackish blood flew from the demon’s eye as he reeled back, screeching in outrage and pain. 

Link slashed twice more and moved closer for a fourth hit, but a claw struck him in the chest, sending him flying back. He hit the dirt and rolled for several feet before coming to a stop. His body panged, but nothing was broken. He gained his feet and readied his sword again.

Vaati was in the air once more, and his eye was warped by Link’s attacks. The pupil was clouded by damage, and it appeared to have trouble focusing on the Hylian. When it did, a beam of energy lanced out towards Link. Its power was diminished, but still deadly. Link was steadying himself when he saw the beam heading towards him. He had no time to dodge, so he raised the mirror shield on his arm in defense. 

The energy beam struck the mirror shield and was reflected back to its caster. The demonic beast didn’t appear to be immune to his own attack, and he reeled back with another screech of pain when the magic struck his eye. The energy beam was cut off, and Link was able to drop his shield. Each successful hit strengthened him with more confidence. He was gaining more and more of an edge over Vaati. While the demon floundered in the air, Link took the opportunity to launch a few more arrows towards the monster. 

Each hit brought clear pain to Vaati, but still the demon persisted in continuing his attack. With a powerful beat of his wings, Vaati conjured a swirling tornado that he launched towards Link. The Hylian was forced to abandon his projectile assault when he saw his arrows deflected by the tornado’s winds. The storm headed swiftly for Link, digging a line of dirt in the ground in its wake. 

Link had no choice but to run, but he wasn’t fast enough to outrun a tornado. He felt winds pull at his clothes, and seconds later he was airborne. The wind caught in the underside of the shield on his arm and sent him twirling up like a top through the air. Link clung to his shield with all of his strength and closed his eyes against the bits of dirt swirling around him. When he heard the winds die in his ears and a sense of weightlessness surround him, he opened his eyes to find himself being swept up out of the top of the tornado. Link crested in his rise, and the wind picked up again around him when he began to freefall.

Link fought back the panic that wanted to once more rise in him. He could see he would fall onto the roof of the windmill--a fall he could survive. He braced himself, and when he hit the sloped roof, he bit back the renewed pain in his body to scramble for a handhold. His fingers found a groove between two tiles, and the grip he managed to obtain was enough to allow him to gain a better hold on the roof. However, in the tornado’s wake he lost his shield. It slid down the roof and fell over the side with a glint of sun off of its mirrored face. Link cursed his luck and carefully gained his feet. 

Vaati was flying low over the village’s damaged, burning buildings in search of Link. Now more than half-blind, he hadn’t noticed where the Hylian had fallen. His screeches and screams of rage filled the air while he scanned the ground for any sign of his opponent. 

Link noticed Vaati was not looking up in his search. And he, atop the windmill roof, had the highest vantage point in the village. He tracked the demon’s frantic movements, and a plan formed in his mind. But it would take a lot of courage, for one misstep or ill-judged movement could end Link, or at the least severely injure him, and Vaati’s victory--and, eventually, Ganondorf’s--would be secured. 

Link closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths. He opened them again and fixed his own depleted sight on the half-blind demon. _“Hey, keese-face!”_

Vaati’s ears worked well enough even if his eye didn’t, and he turned his hungry mouth up towards Link when he heard the Hylian’s taunt. Wasting no time, Vaati glided to the base of the windmill and followed along its height towards the shadowy blob it knew to be Link. Halfway towards the Hylian, Vaati discovered something was wrong. Link was getting bigger, but at a speed that was too fast.

Link’s downward strike hit Vaati’s wounded eye and punctured it in a fatal blow. The demon screeched his loudest yet, and both monster and Hylian fell back to the earth together, hitting the ground in a plume of dirt and stone. Link could feel Vaati’s body struggling beneath him. He dug the Master Sword in deeper, up to the hilt, and turned his head away when foul liquid burst over him. 

Link opened his eyes when he felt his knees touch down onto hard earth. He lifted his head and rose to his feet. In the cloud of settling dirt, he stared down at the splayed Wind Mage who lay between his feet. In death, Vaati was returning to his normal form. His skin paled beneath his torn clothes, and his hair grew out only to soak in the blood that was pouring from the wound in his head. The Master Sword was stuck in the ground, pinning the Wind Mage’s skull. It had pierced through the jewel in Vaati’s hatband, splitting it. The two ruby pieces darkened to black before falling to either side of his head. 

Vaati fixed clouded red eyes onto Link, who stared back in horror at what he had done. The Wind Mage’s gaze was so much like Darcel’s was in his last moments alive. There were even tears in his eyes, and sorrow in his face. But he smiled--not in contempt, or spite. It was a genuine smile; one of relief.

_“Piroci.”_

It was half a minute more before Link realized the Wind Mage was dead. He stared down at the still face, and he knew it wasn’t Vaati’s. He had murdered again.

Link reached out and took hold of the Master Sword’s hilt. His hand shook when he pulled the blade free, and he wiped it clean on one of the rare dry patches of his shirt. When he made to sheath the sword, a movement in the corner of his eye caught his attention. Link spun and raised his blade to strike at this new enemy. The sword clashed against another blade with a clang of steel. 

“Relax,” Shade begged his apprentice. Link stared back, his eyes wide in shock, and Shade slowly forced the Hylian’s blade down. “Relax,” Shade repeated. “You’re on edge and jumping at shadows. You know me. I’m not your enemy.”

Link stared for a few seconds longer before he shook his head. Black blood flew from his hair with the motion, and more of it smeared across his cheek when he raised a hand to hide half his face. “Vaati is dead,” Link whispered with eyes closed. “I murdered him.”

“You saved the village,” Shade corrected.

“It wasn’t him at the end. It was just like Darcel. It was someone innocent, and I--” Link’s voice cracked before he could get the word out again.

Shade waited, but Link’s covered face was turned down, and he didn’t speak again. “I watched you battle him,” the swordsman said. “You held yourself well, and claimed victory because of it.”

Link dropped his hand and turned a livid gaze onto Shade. “You watched me? And you didn’t think to step in to help?”

“You were fine on your own,” Shade pointed out. “I can’t fight your battles for you.” He looked away; towards the gate leading to Death Mountain. Now that the danger was past, Impa was leading the people back to the village. Many of them were already rushing to put out the fires that still burned. “Link, help me move the body,” Shade said. 

Link was reluctant to touch Vaati, but he was too tired to argue against Shade. Together, the two men took up positions by Vaati’s head and feet. When they bent down to pick up the body, it burst apart in a shower of light. Link and Shade staggered back with synchronized cries of surprise. They shielded their eyes from the worst of the bright light and watched it gather itself into a ball that shot up towards the sky. There, it once again burst and took on the shape of a Hylian form.

“Zelda,” Link whispered when the person he knew as Sheik materialized within the light.

Shade shot Link a sharp look as Sheik, prone in the air, began to slowly descend. “Who told you?”

“Vaati,” Link replied. He met Shade’s sharp look with a hard one of his own. “No one else seemed to think it was important enough to tell me.”

“It was out of protection for the both of you,” Shade said.

Link offered no argument. He refocused on Zelda and stretched his arms out in preparation to catch her. When he saw that his hands and arms were still stained with Vaati’s blood, he retracted the limbs and hugged his chest as if in shame. 

Shade took hold of Zelda in Link’s place, and with care he lowered her to the ground, supporting her with one arm while the other worked over her still form, searching for injuries. “She’s fine,” the swordsman announced. “She’s only asleep. We’ll take her to Impa’s house.” Shade looked up and marked Link’s bloodstained clothes. “Why don’t you get cleaned up? Zelda should be awake by the time you’re done.”

Link thought this was a great idea. The various bodily fluids staining his skin and clothes were giving off a sour odor. He made to take a step towards Impa’s house ahead of Shade, but he paused mid-step when he remembered something. “I need to find my shield,” he told his master. “I dropped it during the battle.”

“Then I’ll meet you at Impa’s house,” Shade said. He walked away, and he was soon joined by Impa, who hurried to meet him and her unconscious charge. They disappeared into the Sheikah’s house while Link headed off to hunt around the base of the windmill for his mirror shield. It had cost him a bit of trouble to obtain the shield, and he hoped he hadn’t already lost it. Link’s worries were proven groundless; the shield was lying beside the stone wall of the windmill. He picked it up and brushed dirt from it. He was pleased to find Vaati’s magical attack hadn’t marred its surface. There were no scratches or blemishes, and it--

Link’s eyes caught sight of something on the mirror shield’s surface. He knew at once this was no reflection of either himself or his surroundings. But it was hard to tell exactly what it was, so he raised the shield higher to his face until his nose was almost touching it. His blue eyes reflected back to him, and they in turn reflected the images that were appearing on the surface of the shield. 

It was a landscape--a green field with the hints of bare mountains not far off. There were two people standing on the grass; two young men. One of them had hair the color of a red sunset, and his complexion was dark. The other boy was blonde and lighter-skinned, and cloaked in a green tunic of the Kokiri.

Kakariko Village ceased to exist around Link. He was enraptured by the images before him, and drawn in so completely it was as if he was a part of them.

#

“Are you talking about starting a _war?”_ the blonde-haired young man asked the other. “Are you insane? My parents died in the last war--I don’t want to see war come to Hyrule ever again!”

“But with the power of the Triforce,” the red-haired man argued, “we can bring your parents back and restore this land to its full glory. And I will bring prosperity to my people once more, just as they deserve.”

“I will not stand aside and allow you to destroy lives for some ancient relic!” the blonde snapped out.

“Then you will die with the others who oppose me,” the redhead said, and his friend recoiled. “You can’t hope to stop me. It’s already begun. Even now as we speak, my best are sneaking into the castle to assassinate the king. By nightfall I will ride into town and take what should have fallen to my people’s hands years ago.”

The blonde shook his head. His face was horrorstruck. Without another word, he turned and fled from his friend; heading towards the white castle on the distant horizon. 

_What is this?_ Link had time to wonder in the midst of his thoughts. The images before his eyes--Or were they in his head? Or all around him?--faded to black. It was a moment before any light came back. It grew slowly and revealed the blonde-haired young man again. He was much older this time, and Link’s mind grinded to a halt when he recognized the aged, scarred face and faded blue eyes.

Shade was standing in a bedroom, but he appeared to not be a part of the room. He was almost ghostlike. A woman was resting in the room’s bed. She was pale and soaked with sweat. A nurse was tending to her, and the woman’s husband was slowly stroking her damp hair while whispering reassurances and words of love.

Link recognized the woman all too well, and the husband’s face came to him after a moment’s thought. Soft crying caught his ears next, and he turned his head--or rather, the viewpoint changed--so that he was looking down at two bundled newborns in a bassinet by the woman’s bed.

_Choose._

The voice filled Link’s head, but it wasn’t meant for him. He saw Shade shift uncomfortably and avert his eyes from the newborns.

_You will choose,_ the voice continued. It was a powerful voice--the voice of a Goddess. _Both of them are descendants. You will choose the heir of your destiny, and he will be the one to walk a path of light, while his brother fades to shadow._

“Why should the other fade?” Shade asked.

_Because his death will be a vital step towards making the heir into that which you failed to become--a hero who can bear hardship and sacrifice with an unfaltering spirit._

Shade closed his eyes and sighed softly. “Is there a right or wrong choice?”

_That is not for me to answer. You must decide who the better choice is._

“They’re newborns,” Shade pointed out. 

_It matters not. If we are to convince the Goddess of Time your world can be saved then you must choose a descendant to retread your path from the very beginning. His success in seeing that path to the end will rest not only on the guidance of the Sages, but also on you--your teachings and past experiences. You will guide him and instruct him so that he does not repeat your mistakes. He will walk in your shadow, but will then emerge into his own light._

Link was beginning to understand what was happening, and it filled him with a deep dread. He wanted to stay Shade’s hand when it reached out to touch one of the newborns. He wanted to change the swordsman’s mind--to force him to choose the other newborn. But Link was no more a part of the scene than Shade was eighteen years ago, and so nothing changed.

“I choose--”

#

A hand fell on Link’s shoulder. He jerked out from beneath the touch and whirled around. The sights and sounds of Kakariko Village flooded back. Link could smell smoke on the air and hear the hiss of rain as it quenched the remaining fire. He looked up, startled by the change in weather.

“Impa used magic and coaxed a storm to stop the fire,” a voice explained. “Why are you standing out in the rain, boy?”

Link dropped his eyes and fixed them on Shade. His hands were still gripping the mirror shield. They clenched around its edges when Link asked, “Why did you pick me?”

Shade’s eyes narrowed in confusion. “What are you talking about?”

“Why me?” Link pressed. “Why did you choose me and leave Darcel to fall into shadow? He could have been saved, but you chose me instead. _Why me?”_ Link threw down the mirror shield. It hit the softening ground with a small splash of rainwater. The scene Link had witnessed was fading, but Shade looked down and saw enough of it to understand everything. His lips curled into a scowl.

“That meddlesome Sheikah. I should have--”

The sound of a blade being drawn cut Shade off. He fixed his eyes on the sword point that was now directed at him.

“Tell me the truth,” Link demanded. His voice shook with anger.

“The truth?” Shade repeated. “The truth is this: You have a job to do, and you damn well better do it, or everyone’s fates will be sealed in darkness.” With this said, Shade turned and started the walk back to Impa’s house. “Princess Zelda is awake, and she wants to see you. I wouldn’t keep her waiting.”

_“We’re not done here!”_ Link shouted, and his master paused. “I want to know everything,” Link continued in a lower voice. “I want the whole truth behind my destiny.”

_“Your_ destiny?” Shade repeated. He laughed bitterly and turned to look back at Link. “You have no destiny--not one of your own. You are retracing my steps, in a sense. It is _my_ destiny you are meant to fulfill. Link, you are nothing more than my tool--a blank hero that could have just as easily been Darcel if I’d been more partial to choosing right over left.”

Link could feel tears burning in the corners of his eyes. “You condemned him,” he said to Shade in a breaking voice. “By choosing me, you condemned my brother.”

Shade considered Link’s words and simply replied, “Yes.”

Link took hold of the Master Sword in both hands. His fingers tightened around the hilt. His shoulders were heaving with each deep breath he took in an attempt to remain calm, but he couldn’t hold back his anger. It left him in a scream of rage and grief, and he ran at Shade to strike the swordsman down. 

Shade met the Master Sword with his own blade and pushed Link away. The Hylian stumbled back a step and just as quickly fell back into his attack. He was pushed back once more; to the ground this time, and easily so, Shade was quick to point out. 

“Your anger is making you sloppy,” the swordsman remarked. “Quit this foolishness, boy.”

Link sprung back onto his feet. He slipped on the wet grass, and his next approach ended in a stumbling attack that his master easily parried. Shade added a hard hit of his hilt against the back of Link’s head when the young Hylian stumbled past him, and Link whirled around with a retaliating slash. Shade ducked beneath the swing and struck out with his hilt again, this time deep into Link’s gut. Link dropped to his knees with a breathless gasp, and bent over his stomach in pain.

“I was you once,” Shade said while Link worked to collect his lost breath. “I was chosen by the Goddess Farore to go against an evil threatening this land and the treasure it protects--the Triforce. But that very evil was a friend of mine, and in the end I couldn’t bring myself to strike him down. I went up against him, but I couldn’t retaliate--even when he took my eye.”

Shade dropped to one knee before Link and reached out to grab hold of the Hylian’s chin. He forced Link’s head up so that they met eye-to-eye. “His name was Ganondorf as well, though one of a different time. We grew up together as equals and friends, but his mind was always turning towards dark desires. As king of the Gerudo, he ordered them to attack Hyrule and assassinate the king. They succeeded, and in time Ganondorf was in a position to acquire the Triforce. 

“But when he made to take it, it split into three pieces. One of those pieces came to me. I was chosen to meet my old friend in battle. Instead, I betrayed the Goddess who had put so much faith in me as to grant me a piece of her power. I fled Hyrule and left it to its dark fate.”

Link yanked his head out of Shade’s hand and spat, _“Coward.”_

“I won’t deny it,” Shade said. “But I wonder how will _you_ fare when you meet your friend in battle? Will you be unable to raise your blade? Will you see him as Darcel all over again? Are you going to murder a man who has watched over you for most of your life?” 

Link gave no answer, and Shade smiled sourly. “I suppose we’ll see, won’t we? If my guidance hasn’t been enough to teach you not to repeat my mistakes, then all of this planning really was for naught, and I won’t feel as bad for taking your eye.”

Link’s gaze widened as Shade stood up. “What did you say?” 

Shade was already walking away, but when he heard the fresh anger in Link’s tone, he paused, turned around, and explained, “The wolf was me--a part of me; a resentful, hate-filled part. The part that wants to see you fail just to prove the Goddesses wrong. You never had to pay a price to retrieve the Master Sword. It was meant to be yours. I--or that part of me--wanted to weaken you on purpose.” Shade laughed with a shake of his head. “You were so ignorant and unsure of yourself at the time, I could have probably taken a whole limb and you would have agreed to it.” 

Link stared down at the wet ground. The view before his good eye wavered and doubled, and he blinked away angry tears.

Shade turned his gaze upward and marked the cloudy sky. “I’m not going to stand out in the rain any longer. You know the truth now--or at least the part that matters. If you’re not happy with the way things are, then speak to your Goddesses about it.”

Shade made to walk away again. He stopped once more when he heard Link gain his feet. As if reading the Hylian’s mind, Shade called back, “The Master Sword will not harm me, boy. I am not evil, and I was once its wielder. You’d have better luck attacking me with a butter knife.”

The clink of equipment and the sound of wet footfalls marked Link’s rapid approach towards his master. 

Shade was already bored of Link’s anger. He spun around again with his blade raised. He was going to knock some sense into the boy one way or another. But Link wasn’t within sight when Shade turned. 

“What--”

Shade felt the tingle of magic in the air. He turned, but too late. A leg swept his feet out from beneath him, and he fell down hard to the ground on his back. He at once made to rise, but a heavy weight dropped onto his chest, and the point of an arrow pricked his nose. Shade froze and marked the arrowhead that now dimpled his skin. He relaxed against the ground to put a few inches of space between himself and the arrow. 

“I thought Vaati blocked your magic during the fight,” Shade said.

“I got it back at his death,” Link snapped. Black blood marked his skin and clothes like war paint, and his clothes were darkened from the fluids and rain, but his blue eyes burned bright with anger. His entire body was as taut as the drawn bow in his hands. The slightest loosening of his fingers would release his arrow. 

Shade managed a small laugh. “So you bested me this one time!”

“One time is all it will take,” Link snarled. “You’ve used me. You’ve degraded me. Weakened me. Kept me in the dark about _everything…_ Now it ends.”

“Everything I’ve done for you was only to help make you stronger,” Shade explained. “I am no longer responsible for the resentful ghost that will take your eye. I _do_ want to see you succeed, Link, and each day I become more confident in your ability. You have all the makings of a hero.”

“Easy for you to toss that word out now when you’re on the brink of death, right?”

“Death makes no difference to someone like me,” Shade said. “Feel free to release that arrow if you’re so eager for retribution.”

The swordsman felt his apprentice tense even more. It was strange. Shade could remember dragging Link half-dead out of the Zora River; he could remember how small and light the Hylian had felt in his arms on the ride to the Kokiri. Now experience and grief had given the young man more weight that pressed uncomfortably against Shade’s chest. The arrow shifted the slightest bit as Link prepared to release it.

Shade saw a flash of light to his left. Link failed to see it in his distraction until the light was front and center, balanced on the arrowhead between him and Shade. The swordsman didn’t recognize the light at first, but he heard Link say, “Navi?”

Shade forced his eyes to focus on the light in front of his face. Now he could see the shape of gossamer wings. Fairy dust tickled his nose, and he sneezed; his whole body jerked with the motion beneath Link.

Link jerked as well at the sound of the sneeze. The anger left his face and was replaced by numb shock. He relaxed his bow, and Navi flew off of the lowering arrow to touch down on the Hylian’s left thigh. Her light waxed and waned in slow bursts; almost as if she was attempting to relay a message. After half a minute during which Link studied her with unfocused eyes, Navi rose into the air. Link rose as well and stepped back from Shade. 

The swordsman stood up with a wary eye, but Link no longer had an interest in harming his master. As Shade watched, a shield of blue magic enveloped the young Hylian. Within it, Link bowed over with mouth open and eyes shut tight; his tormented scream was silenced by the magic. 

Shade became aware of the eyes on him and Link. He turned his head to find many villagers lined up not far off. They had watched the proceedings in silence. Their expressions were ones of varying pity for both men. Shade gestured to Anju, whom he could see on the edge of the crowd. She walked over to him, protected from the rain by an umbrella. “Take Link and get him cleaned up, would you?” Shade asked her. 

Anju nodded and walked over to Link. His magical shield was gone, and he was standing with his face bowed and concealed behind shaking hands. Under Anju’s gentle coaxing, he allowed himself to be steered away.


	26. The Wager

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Link finally learns the whole truth behind his destiny.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for your continued support!
> 
> Only four chapters left now, counting this one...
> 
> Please enjoy, thank you!

# In the Shade of a Hero

### The Wager

The mirror had fogged with the steam from the bathwater, but a quick swipe of a cloth had it cleared. Now Link stood before it with one hand stretching and pulling at his face; tugging otherwise unseen patches of skin into view for inspection. It was a frustrating task. Link had to turn his head to the right to see much of anything in his better eye, and that made it difficult to inspect the right side of his head and neck. 

In the mirror’s reflection, Link saw Anju walk through the open bathroom door and stop to stare at him with a puzzled expression. In her hands she carried a small bundle--folded clothes. Link flicked his eyes from Anju’s reflected gaze and fixed them on his own face again. He caught sight of a black smudge close to his hairline. With frustrated grunt, he raised the wet washcloth in his hand and scrubbed the errant smear of blood away. He fell to inspecting his face again.

“I think you got it all,” Anju spoke up in a small voice. 

Link sighed and turned away from the mirror. He dropped the washcloth in a basin of water and placed his hand on the knot of the towel around his waist to make sure it was still secure. Anju was closing the distance to him. Once she had drawn near, she held out the clothes for Link. “Your instructor dropped these off for you.”

Link’s lip curled, and he snatched the clothes out of Anju’s hands. She stepped back a step in surprise, and Link felt a stab of shame. “I’m sorry,” he murmured.

“It’s all right,” Anju assured him. “I understand. I don’t know what’s going on between you and Shade, but it’s something the two of you will have to work out on your own. However, getting angry isn’t going to speed up that process.”

“I know. I know. Thank you, Anju,” Link said with a grateful bow of his head. “I appreciate the words and your kindness. Do you need anything in return? Was your home damaged at all?”

Anju shook her head, smiling. “It’s just superficial damage. I got off lucky. No, I think it would be better for you to get out of here. Shade told me someone is waiting for you at Impa’s house. I’m sure you don’t want to keep them waiting much longer, right?”

Link nodded his head. He was eager to see Zelda… But at the same time, a sense of uneasiness filled him. He wasn’t sure what to expect during his reunion with the princess. He had done his best to prepare for the inevitable battle against Ganondorf, yet along the way he had done a few terrible things--the latest being his loss of control with Shade. Even if he was just a proxy or a tool, that was no reason for him to threaten murder. It wasn’t how heroes acted. 

And what of his near-betrayals? So Zelda was Sheik all along. That didn’t excuse his behavior. He didn’t believe Zelda was as blithe as she had claimed during their spiritual encounter. She had to be feeling discarded; insignificant. How could Link tell her that was the furthest from the truth when his actions said otherwise?

“Link?” Anju called softly, and the Hylian started out of his troubled thoughts. He managed a smile for Anju, and she returned the expression. Once Link was dressed, she saw out of her house with a few parting words and another smile. 

The rain had stopped, but the sky was still overcast, and the air was damp. As Link walked towards Impa’s house on the other side of the village, he watched the people of Kakariko work together to patch up buildings. Much of the work being done was of a provisional nature until the weather was better for permanent fixes. There were also a few buildings completely ravaged by Vaati’s attacks. Each time Link passed a scorched shell of a house, he felt a pang of guilt. 

Impa’s house had suffered only the initial damage caused when Link had crashed through the roof. From the outside, Link could see planks of wood were nailed across the hole as a temporary solution. His body still remembered the toss, but the hot bath at Anju’s house had eased the worst of the pain for the moment. 

Link knocked on Impa’s door, announcing his arrival for politeness’s sake. After a few seconds with no answer, he walked in. He knew at once by the stillness in the house that it was near-empty. However, there was a strange tingling in the air--the feeling that someone was watching and waiting for him. It was the feeling of another person closely connected to Link’s heart and soul. He followed it to the second floor of Impa’s house where a young woman sat alone in a bedroom.

Although Link had expected her, it still stunned him to see Zelda before him--not in disguise, or as a mere image, but as her own self. Her goldenrod hair flowed down like a shining curtain, and she moved like a dancer when she approached him on slow steps--seemingly fragile in appearance, but with hidden strength. She was in a simple dress of a soft blue color. 

Link thought she glowed like the sun, and he opened his mouth to speak. The words failed him twice before he could manage a whispered, “Zelda…” 

Zelda smiled. “Yes, it’s me. I’m really here this time,” she said. She reached out and took Link’s left hand into both of her own; enveloping the calloused fingers within her slender grip. She felt the power of the Triforce parts she and Link carried stir, but she forced back the power so that it wouldn’t reveal itself. Now was not the time for talk of destiny and battle. Zelda only wanted to see and speak with Link for as long as she could pretend the world contained only them. 

Link raised his free hand, intending to caress Zelda’s cheek, but he stopped with a look of shame and slight horror, and dropped the hand to his side in haste. 

Seeing this, Zelda took up Link’s right hand. She noticed a dark residue beneath his fingernails, and she looked up into Link’s face to see him cast his eyes aside in shame. 

“Come here,” Zelda ordered. She tugged lightly on the hand still in her grip, and Link followed her to the room’s bed. After digging around in a side table, Zelda pulled out a small, pointed nail file that she used on Link’s nails to dig out the dried blood beneath them. 

Link watched her in silence, feeling fresh pangs of guilt when he saw the curls of black blood dropping into Zelda’s lap. Would he ever feel anything but shame when around her again? He didn’t think it was possible anymore.

When she was finished, Zelda brushed the small mess to the floor with a casual hand and looked up into Link’s eyes with a smile. “Feel better?”

Link couldn’t speak. He was still reeling in the wake of seeing Zelda before his eyes, whole and unharmed. All he could manage was to wrap his arms around her thin frame and hug her tight; his face buried in the curve of her neck. He breathed deep, taking in her scent, and released the breath with a hitching sob. 

“Link?” Zelda’s hand moved up and down Link’s back in a soothing motion. “What is it?”

Link swallowed. “You were always there for me,” he croaked. “It wasn’t me who was looking to save you after all. You saved me instead, again and again. And I didn’t even know it. I acted so terribly, and I--”

“What are you talking about?” Zelda pushed Link back, and her hands wiped away his tears. “Is this about Sheik? Link, that was me!”

“But I didn’t know that, and I… I…” Link grimaced, bowed over, and clapped his hands over his head. “I hate this,” he eked out in a small voice. “Things were so much easier when I was nobody.”

“Hey.” Zelda’s fingers drew Link’s chin up. She smiled again at him, and there was no anger or disgust in her expression like he had feared. “You were never nobody, Link.” 

Zelda drew Link into a firm embrace. His arms tightened around her, and he felt her hug him tighter in return, and for a while it was enough just to hold her in silence.

#

Shade returned to Impa’s house late at night when the Sheikah was asleep, and the house was silent and dark. Upon walking into the front room, he spied a familiar scattering of equipment resting against the base of the wall close by the front door. The shield amongst it was newly cleaned and polished; Impa must have recovered it from outside. The rest of the equipment indicated Link was here, and at this late hour Shade knew where the young Hylian would be. 

Zelda was laid in a guest room after her ordeal. The door to that room was closed when Shade approached it on silent feet. He could imagine the princess and her hero together for hours on end behind that door; interrupted by nothing save the occasional meal Impa provided for them. Hours of bliss just talking and being with one another… It was a rare spot of bright happiness in a world that was falling under shadow. 

Shade didn’t want to intrude upon that happiness, but there were things that had to be discussed--things that were left unsaid earlier in the day. So it was with reluctance that he walked up to the closed door and raised a hand to knock gently upon the wood.

The door opened before Shade’s knuckles could make contact. Dressed in loose pajama slacks, Link stepped out of the room on silent feet, moving like a thief in shadows. Even the door barely made a click when he closed it behind him. Shade saw a flash of pale shoulder still in the room’s bed before the view was cut off. Link’s angry eyes drilled into the swordsman’s paler blue gaze. 

“What do you want?” Link snapped in a quiet voice. “She’s sleeping.”

“It’s you I want to speak to,” Shade said. “If you’re willing,” he added when the anger grew in Link’s eyes. “Link, when I told you many lives are resting on your success or failure, I wasn’t just talking about the fact that Ganondorf will destroy this land if you don’t stop him. There is a bet going on between the Goddesses of the Triforce and the Goddess of Time. If you don’t do what I could not, this world--this timeline--will cease to exist.”

“What new nonsense is this now?” Link muttered, but he followed Shade downstairs nonetheless. They took seats at Impa’s kitchen table across from one another. Link hugged his bare chest and pointedly kept his bad eye turned to Shade so that he didn’t have to focus on him any more than necessary. His entire manner reeked of juvenile rebellion, and Shade had to chuckle. 

Link snapped his head around for a bare moment to glare at Shade with full force. “What’s so funny?”

“Nothing,” Shade said with a shake of his head and a half-smile. “I was just thinking… You remind me so much of myself when I was a child.”

“I’m _not_ a chi--”

“I know,” Shade cut in before Link could get any further. “You’re a man, Link. You have been for some time. I apologize for not recognizing it sooner. I was so determined to see the worst in you. I wanted to see you fail so that I could feel better about running away when the world’s fate once rested on my shoulders.”

Link turned his head away again. “I won’t fail,” he said in a determined voice. “Not even if you take all of my sight for the sake of your petty revenge.” Shade didn’t comment on Link’s remark, and the young Hylian continued, “Say what you’ll say. I want to go back to bed.”

“Very well,” Shade said. “I can see you’re eager to return to Zelda’s side, so I’ll try to make this quick. When I was in your position countless years ago, I was chosen by the Goddess Farore to go against an old friend. But at the same time, I represented another Goddess--the Goddess of Time. By opening the Door of Time that protected the Master Sword--by using the Ocarina of Time and the Song of Time to gain access to that sacred blade--I entered into her service, in a way. I became the Hero of Time. So when I turned tail and ran, leaving Hyrule to its inevitable dark fate, the Goddess of Time was anything but happy.”

“I suppose you made her look bad,” Link muttered, and his master shrugged. “So what did she do? Did she go after you?”

Shade sighed and shook his head. “No.” He fell into a momentary, tormented silence before continuing, “The people of Hyrule prayed for deliverance from Ganondorf’s evil, which spread like a plague once he obtained the Triforce of Wisdom and combined it with his own Triforce of Power. In my timeline, the princess of Hyrule--also named Zelda--carried the Wisdom piece. I carried Courage. It was wasted on me.”

Shade paused again, this time to study Link. He wondered if the Hylian was putting the pieces together--seeing the obvious parallels. Shade thought he saw Link’s jaw tense, but the young man never spoke, and his head remained half-turned away. 

“So the people prayed,” Shade picked up. “They prayed to the three Goddesses, but it was another who answered their prayers. The Goddess of Time has influence over the passing of time--including the celestial bodies that help to govern it. She used her power over the moon and forced the tides to rise. She… She drowned Hyrule.”

Link’s head snapped around towards Shade. His eyes were wide with alarm and horror. 

Shade lowered his eyes to avoid the look. “The Goddess of Time had lost faith in the Hylians, and so she eliminated them--along with all of the other races they were connected to. Hyrule vanished under a vast sea while I passed my years, unaware, in other lands. No one came looking for me. They thought I had died at Ganondorf’s hands when I failed to stop him. They even erected a headstone for me in the hall of heroes, though there was no corpse to place in the grave.”

“So you died an old, cowardly man,” Link snapped. 

“Not so old,” Shade said, sounding stung. “After many years, I tried to return to my homeland. I thought with the passing of time I would be unrecognizable, and I could restart a life in whatever Hyrule had become under Ganondorf’s influence. But the path that once led to Hyrule was shadowed by a wood I no longer recognized. I became lost, and I eventually succumbed to the elements. I was finally forced to face the Goddesses, and though they were angry they also wanted to use me to reverse the terrible events that had destroyed Hyrule.

“There was a bet of sorts placed on my success--or I should say, _your_ success, Link. A new timeline, split from my own, was created by the Goddess of Time. I was tasked to return to this new Hyrule and choose my proxy--the one who would attempt to retread my path, only with more success. If this new hero could prove to the Goddess of Time that not all Hylians were cowards like me then she would not let the same fate fall upon this new timeline, and Hyrule would prosper again.

“Until such a time arrived when the new hero was needed, I was forced to wander the land as a shade--not alive, but not entirely dead either. Since I died in the woods, it was them that gave me a physical existence when I needed it. The Great Deku Tree granted me a body and a horse, and as long as I stayed within the lands under his influence I could pass myself off as a living person.”

Link was beginning to see the smaller pieces of the puzzle click into place. “That’s why you didn’t come into the Gerudo Valley,” he murmured.

“That land is forsaken,” Shade confirmed. “You would have seen me as I truly am if I had taken even one step into that valley.” Shade stretched his arms over his head and dropped them to fold his hands atop his chest. “Still, I didn’t like the idea that I would be forced to train someone to do my job. And so with the Great Deku Tree’s power, my anger and resentment was able to take a form of its own, separate from me. It’s what you encountered on your walk to obtain the Master Sword. And when I saw the Goddess Farore select you at such a young age…” Shade shook his head once. “I wasn’t ready to believe you could ever do what I could not.”

“Is that it then?” Link asked, and he spared Shade a glance. “I’m just a horse the Goddesses are betting on?”

“If you want to put it that way… yes,” Shade replied. “And you are approaching the final leg of the race, Link. You are nearly at the point where I abandoned my destiny. All you have to do is continue on and destroy Ganondorf.”

“Oh, no worries then,” Link snapped in a tone of bitter sarcasm. Abruptly, he stood up from the table and walked out of the kitchen. “If you’re done with the bedtime story, I’m going back to sleep.”

Shade had half a mind to call Link back; to apologize to him. But he knew the Hylian was angry, and that any apology would sound false to his ears. So he let his apprentice go, and long after Link had fallen back into sleep, Shade still sat at the table in a cloud of regret.

#

The rising sun glinted off of a dull piece of gemstone stuck in the ground. The guay circling above--a spy for Ganondorf--was immediately attracted by the light. It circled back, folded its wings into a dive, and landed lightly upon the ground by the gemstone. 

It was one half of a larger gem, but the second half was nothing more than shards after a week spent under the trampling feet of villagers and the occasional horse. Curiously, the bird pecked at the gem piece. A shock of fleeting dark power traveled through its beak; ruffling its feathers and nearly sending it into the sky in panic. 

The guay steadied itself. It had a simple brain, but it knew this was the sort of thing its master would want. It collected the gemstone and took off for the dark castle on the horizon.

#

The music from a newly-repaired lyre echoed down through the roof to where Shade and Impa sat in the kitchen. Laughter followed the short burst of notes, and Shade sneered with an audible growl.

“He is drunk with love.”

“Relax, Shade,” Impa soothed. 

“It’s been a week,” Shade continued while more music played above. “A week wasted, in my opinion. Ganondorf is no doubt collecting his forces--”

“Relax,” Impa repeated. “You forget, Shade, that you are not the only one privy to the Goddesses’ bet. We Sages also know what is at stake, so believe me when I say that a week’s wait means little at this point. Everything plays into the eventual fate of Hyrule even if it appears to have little significance.”

“You’re telling me it’s a part of Link’s destiny to waste a week with the princess while the world darkens all around us?”

“They’re strengthening a powerful bond,” Impa argued with a smile. “And that bond will be Link’s strongest driving force to save our world. There’s something else to that bond, too…”

“What?” Shade questioned, now looking a little more interested.

“That is none of your concern,” Impa teased, and the swordsman sighed irritably, much to the Sheikah’s amusement.

Pressed between the warm tiles of Impa’s roof and the warmer sun overhead, Link lay with his hands folded atop his chest. Beside him, Zelda plucked out a short lullaby on the lyre Impa had fixed for her the day before. While she played, she explained to Link, “Impa used to sing this lullaby to me when I was younger. She called it Zelda’s Lullaby. Isn’t it pretty?”

“It is,” Link agreed. He held out a hand for the lyre, adding, “But it could be better.” Zelda, with a curious smile, handed the lyre over to Link. He studied it intensely as if looking for some hidden message within it before he dragged his fingers back and forth across the strings in a discordant melody. 

Zelda covered her ears and laughed. “Link! Come on, it’ll break again!”

Link smiled and stilled his fingers. “Sorry. That was a joke. No, listen: I think it would sound better backwards.”

“Backwards…?” Zelda trailed off. Link had begun to play her lullaby--only the song was reversed, and the tempo was slow and easy. Zelda closed her eyes while she listened to it, and a soft smile touched her lips. When the last note had faded away, she opened her eyes and looked down at Link. “That was lovely. You have a gift for music, Link.”

“Nah, just good ears,” Link said, and he and Zelda laughed. 

“It needs a name,” Zelda said next. “Your song. It’s not my lullaby anymore if it’s played backwards.”

“But it’s still your song,” Link argued. He sat up and pressed a soft kiss to Zelda’s lips. “So I’ll call it the Ballad of the Goddess, because you look as beautiful as any Goddess I’ve seen.”

“And you’ve seen a Goddess?” Zelda asked, arching an eyebrow.

“One or two,” Link replied with his own smile, and Zelda laughed gaily until Link cut her off with another kiss. Their lips lingered, moving in familiar motions, and it may have gone further if a hard jolt didn’t travel through them. 

Link broke away from Zelda with such suddenness that it was a second before Zelda realized she, too, had felt the jolt. The thrill of being close to one another died before it could properly gain any strength. Now the two Hylians felt cold and weak. 

“Did you feel that--?” Link began.

Zelda nodded. “Yes. What was it?”

“I don’t know. Wait… I think…” Link stood up and grew as still as a dog on point. He fixed his eyes on the horizon just visible over the cliffs that bordered most of Kakariko Village. After a moment, he turned his head a quarter-turn to the right in favor of his better eye; his gaze narrowed, almost as if he could see a hidden message. 

“Something is coming.”

Within the building under Link’s feet, Impa straightened in her chair. Catching sight of her tensing body, Shade lowered the cup he had just raised to his lips and asked, “What is it?”

“It’s Ganondorf,” Impa said in a whisper. “I can feel him--I can feel the shadow of his anger and hatred spreading towards us. He knows Vaati is dead. He knows Link killed him. He… He knows the princess is here.”


	27. Taken

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ganondorf arrives at Kakariko Village, seeking Zelda.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for your continued support!
> 
> I borrowed a line from _Red Dead Redemption_ in this chapter because that game... Seriously, one of my favorites.
> 
> Please enjoy, thank you!

# In the Shade of a Hero

### Taken

The guay fluttered nervously and paced a short width within the corner at its back. Two menacing shadows fell over it, and it uttered a nervous _crawk_ around the broken gemstone in its beak.

“Easy, little birdie,” Koume soothed.

“We’re not going to hurt you,” Kotake assured the small monster.

The guay took flight.

“Get it, Koume!”

“I’ve got it, Kotake!”

The guay didn’t allow itself to be caught. It instead dropped the gemstone and, now lighter, flitted out of the room with a series of outraged squawks. The twin witches paid it no mind. They stooped down together, and Koume picked up the gemstone.

“As we thought!” she said in hushed excitement. “It still retains some of the demon’s power.”

“But it won’t last much longer,” Kotake pointed out. Like her sister, she could feel the ebb and flow of the gemstone’s power. Its destruction under the Master Sword’s blade had diminished its sealed power considerably, and what remained had seeped out over the past week. Now only dregs were left.

Koume waved an impatient hand. “It doesn’t have to last long. He just needs a little push. Now together, Kotake.”

The gemstone floated out of Koume’s hand to hover between the witches. They held their palms out towards it, and their fingers twitched and glowed with accumulating magic. With twin motions, they pushed their power into the gemstone. It flashed red and glowed for a brief moment before darkening again.

“Shall we take it to him, Koume?” Kotake asked. Her sister nodded, and together they made their way to their son’s chambers.

#

_Don’t do it don’t do it don’t_

The knife wobbled against the dark skin of Ganondorf’s right wrist. A line of blood bloomed along the blade, and it slipped down to puddle atop the table beside the braced hand. The red liquid glimmered beneath the fierce glow of the Triforce of Power.

_Don’t do it don’t do it don’t do it don’t do_

Ganondorf clenched his eyes shut in a grimace, and the fingers around the blade flexed. The Triforce of Power was throwing images and sensations into his mind. Green fields. A sun that didn’t scorch. The soft touch of the wind, carrying with it the scent of spring. 

_Don’t do it don’t do it don’t do it DON’T_

Ganondorf saw his people happy and secure. He saw all of Hyrule under his reign--everyone equal. No more treaties or scathing looks. No more huddling from the night’s deadly cold. But at what price? Everyone would fear him. He would be loathed still, only for a different reason. 

_DON’T DO IT DON’T DO IT_

So if nothing would change, why should he take the lesser path? With this power, he accomplished things. He had already taken a castle and a kingdom. He could continue to take until he had all he desired.

_Don’t do it._

Ganondorf’s hand relaxed around the knife’s handle.

_Don’t._

The blade pulled away, and the cut healed itself. All of this power… and he was still weak. With a roar, Ganondorf tossed the knife away. It embedded itself into the doorframe just as his mothers strode into the room.

“Ganondorf, we’ve finally found evidence of Vaati’s disappearance,” Koume began.

“The heroic brat killed him,” Kotake revealed, and she held out the broken gemstone.

Ganondorf had almost forgotten about Vaati. The past week’s memories were clouded by a red mist that drew back only rarely. This wasn’t the first time Ganondorf had held a blade to his wrist; his neck; his chest. He blinked away the most recent fog’s remnants and reached out for the gemstone with a shaking hand.

A jolt of static lit up Ganondorf’s hand, and the last few hours of Vaati’s life flickered through his mind. Link was prominent in the last hour. With every flash of determined blue eyes, Ganondorf’s hand tightened around the gemstone. And when the Master Sword filled Vaati’s eye seconds before the view ruptured, the Gerudo gasped and staggered back. He bowed over and hugged his chest with his free arm. What was this tight sensation in his chest? It felt like anger, but there was… satisfaction? The strange feeling confused Ganondorf. Why would he be satisfied with Link’s victory over Vaati?

_Because now he’ll come after you._

Yes. Yes, that was it! Link would come here. And when he did…

“No,” Ganondorf grunted. “I won’t.”

Vaati’s memories came forward again. Now they insisted that Ganondorf avenge him. They insisted that he grow angry and seek retribution. And there was something else. Something he had overlooked in the wake of seeing Link.

Zelda. She was in Kakariko Village.

Ganondorf saw it now. She had walked into an ambush. Her right hand flashed with a familiar light in the seconds before Vaati pounced, and Ganondorf was reminded of what she carried. He felt the Triforce of Power’s yearning as well. Its insistence joined with the remnant of Vaati’s, and his own anger at Link for making everything so _difficult._ Couldn’t he see Ganondorf only wanted to create a better world? Why couldn’t he see that? _Why?_

“Ganondorf?” Koume ventured after a long silence.

“How do you feel?” Kotake asked.

Ganondorf straightened up and relaxed his arms. The mindless anger was gone; contained, for the moment, by a calmness that the witches hadn’t seen for days. But they could sense it simmering; waiting for just the right moment to boil over.

“I think it’s time for a reunion,” Ganondorf said in a low voice with a hint of devilish amusement in it. “And the boy will have to be disciplined, of course. He’s gone astray. He doesn’t know what’s good for him, but I’ll show him.” Ganondorf’s Triforce piece flashed, and a black, heavy sword appeared within his hand. “And I’ll make sure the lesson sticks.”

#

“He knows the princess is here.”

Shade snapped to his feet. Above him, through the roof, came the sound of a protest in a feminine voice. The next moment a small burst of Farore’s Wind announced Link’s arrival. In his arms he cradled Zelda. The princess was struggling within his tight grip.

“…me _go,_ Link! I’m not going to hide when my people--Aaah!” Zelda had fought her way out of Link’s arms. She dropped to the floor with a grunt, and more than one voice called her name. Zelda gained her feet and pushed away Link’s reaching arms. “No!” she snapped. “You will not hand me off as if I’m a child who needs babysitting!”

Link looked to Impa. His eyes were strained with worry, but there was determination in the expression. “You’ll protect her?” Link asked.

“Impa, _no--”_

Impa nodded and wrapped Zelda within her grip. Her hand cut off the princess’s protests before they could begin. “I am a Sheikah and the reincarnation of the Sage of Shadow. Here in Kakariko Village I’m strongest. Ganondorf won’t get to her easily.”

“He won’t get to her at all if I have anything to do with it,” Link said. He rushed away, heading upstairs to collect his equipment. 

In Impa’s arms, Zelda struggled and called out for him to stop in a muffled voice. Impa hushed her charge, turned to Shade, and nodded her head towards the sound of Link’s steps. “Take care of him. Don’t let him get in over his head.”

“Right, I will,” Shade promised, and Impa disappeared into the shadows of her home. Zelda’s muffled cries died away into silence; the Sheikah was already working to cloak the princess in whatever protections she could manage.

The sound of Link’s boots coming down the stairs broke the silence. The young Hylian hurried down to the first floor, leaping the last three stairs. His equipment clattered against his back when he landed, and he hurried out the door. His companion Navi wasn’t far behind, shadowing him and burning bright with energy.

Shade followed his apprentice in increasing unease. Link looked half-crazed. The approaching threat against Zelda had unleashed some inner fury, and it worried Shade. That fury could make Link reckless if things came to a fight. The swordsman hastened his steps and caught up to Link halfway to the small stable behind Impa’s house. 

“Link, don’t be hasty,” Shade said after reaching out to grab Link’s shoulder. The Hylian paused, but didn’t turn around. “We don’t know what’s coming. You need to go into this with a clear head.”

“My head is clear,” Link said. His words were even and didn’t hint at the agitation that was evident on his face. 

Shade didn’t believe him. “For the Goddesses’ sakes, you’re not even dressed for battle,” he attempted to argue. “At least put on some chain mail or armor--”

“No time,” Link cut in, and he was hurrying again with Shade struggling to keep up. “Ganondorf will be here within minutes. He’s probably bringing an army.”

“All the more reason to better equip yourself,” Shade snapped. 

Link whirled around. “I’m not going to let Kakariko burn again!” he nearly shouted. Shade looked back with an expressionless face. “I’m not going to let anyone else die!” Link’s voice dropped. “Ganondorf has taken friends and family from me again and again. I’m going to do all I can to make sure that doesn’t happen anymore.” He turned forward and disappeared into the stable.

Within one of the three stalls, Epona kicked at the wall and tossed her head. She could already feel her master’s anxiety. Link slipped into her stall and calmed her with the strange, natural magic he had over beasts. Once the mare was cooperative, Link fitted her with a saddle and bridle with experienced speed.

Shade was standing alongside his horse Daze when Link led Epona out of her stall. The Hylian started badly; he hadn’t seen the swordsman’s mare a moment ago. For a moment, Link could only stand beside his own mount and stare at Shade. Almost casually, he asked, “If you’re a spirit, can you still perish?”

Shade shrugged one shoulder. “I’m not sure.” He lifted a hand to pat the side of Daze’s head. Both her and her master appeared as solid as ever. “Yet even if I could, I would still follow you into battle, Link. Someone needs to keep an extra eye on you--seeing how it’s my fault you’re lacking one.”

Instead of getting angry or frightened at the reminder of his depleted vision, Link grinned at his master. “You’ll have to keep up with me if you’re going to do that, old man.”

“The arrogance of youth,” Shade mused aloud, and both he and his apprentice laughed together. “So what’s the plan, lad?”

“We go out swords swinging, of course.”

“And if Ganondorf is indeed bringing an army?”

“We take out as many as we can before they take us out.”

Shade nodded in approval. “A reckless, suicidal charge. If anything we’ll be remembered as having gone down fighting. So what are we waiting for? Let’s earn our graves in the hall of heroes.”

#

Link may have felt brave at heart, but he paused when he and Shade rode out onto Hyrule Field minutes later. Link had not set eyes upon the field in a week, and he found it vastly changed. On his return trip from Gerudo Valley, the field had appeared to be shadowed and the grass, dull. Now the sky was gray even in the middle of the day, although the sun shined on unhindered by any clouds. Patches of dead grass and bare earth marred the once-emerald field’s gentle slopes. Disheartened, Link glanced up at the dismal sky. His spirits were cheered slightly when he saw the familiar silhouette of Kaepora Gaebora soaring high above. 

“Link…”

Link dropped his eyes and turned them out towards the horizon. His right eye showed only glimmers of light, but his left all-too-clearly revealed the plume of dust and dirt that trailed an approaching army.

“A dozen stalfos on foot,” Shade relayed, “with Ganondorf on horseback.”

“No,” Link shook his head. “Three dozen. They’re lined up behind each other.” He turned a strained smile onto Shade. “Even with half my vision gone, it’s still better than an old man’s.”

Shade ignored the jibe. “Hardly an army,” he remarked, frowning at the approaching company. “He must think we don’t pose a threat. Still, three dozen isn’t something to laugh about when the odds are eighteen to one.” Shade glanced at Link and asked, “Are you scared?”

Link released a heavy sigh. “’Course I am,” he muttered. “But I’m no coward. I’m not going to run away. I’ve faced tougher challenges than a bunch of bone bags.” Link cast an eye around the immediate area. “We should get across the river. I want to prevent them from crossing the bridge.” Without waiting for Shade’s input, Link spurred his horse across the dying grass to the bridge that spanned Zora River. 

Shade thought Link’s concern for the village--and for Zelda’s safety--was already affecting the boy. It would be smarter to use the bridge as a funnel to narrow the enemy’s route, thus making it easier to pick them off. In the openness of the field, it would be all too easy to be surrounded and overwhelmed. But Epona’s hooves were already clacking over the stone bridge. With a curse Shade spurred Daze, crossed over the bridge, and joined Link, where he drew his horse to a halt alongside the younger Hylian. 

“Ganondorf will want to talk first,” Shade said to his apprentice. “Let me handle him.”

Link’s gaze was set on the approaching army, which was close enough now for him to discern individuals’ armor. He nodded at Shade’s suggestion; and when Ganondorf finally halted his company fifty feet away, Link tensed but kept his mouth shut.

Riding atop his ill-tempered Gerudo stallion, Ganondorf alone approached. After stopping, he surveyed both Shade and Link. His gaze lingered longest on the latter, the expression unreadable, before he addressed them both. “Only two?” he remarked, sounding disappointed. “I’m almost insulted.”

“Your presence on our lands is more of an insult,” Shade retorted. 

Link glanced at him in surprise. Shade’s inflection and dialect were strange. It was Hylian, but it was an older form--not as old as the one he had used when speaking to the Sages, but it still rang with the same ancient strength that demanded immediate respect.

Ganondorf noticed the tone and dialect as well, and Link was pleased to see it unnerved the Gerudo a bit to hear it. “You are not from around here,” the Evil King remarked of Shade, and he smiled. “Are you the one who’s been overseeing Link’s training? I must congratulate you. The lad is almost unrecognizable. Still, even with whatever newfound strength he might have, the two of you are not enough to stop me. You are at a severe disadvantage. Hand over the princess, and I will not allow my soldiers to raze Kakariko Village to the ground.”

“Princess Zelda is not in Kakariko,” Shade said. He sounded convincing even to Link.

Ganondorf lifted a hand. Clasped between his large fingers was half of a blackened gemstone. “This told me otherwise. Vaati was slain by you, Link. I must thank you for removing a troublesome bother for me. However, do not think I am so foolish as to believe your master’s claim. Enough of the Wind Mage’s spirit lingered in the jewel that I was able to see his last moments in life. I saw him take the princess prisoner before his battle with you. I know she is in Kakariko.” Ganondorf tossed the gemstone down at the ground, and his stalfos companions hooted laughter. 

Link frowned. Something was different about Ganondorf. He thought back on their last meeting in the Spirit Temple. Ganondorf was different at that time, too--dangerous and almost a stranger. Today he was much the same only the evil in his body and voice was more controlled. More refined. And all the more dangerous for it.

These thoughts had to be put aside when Shade spoke once more with such conviction that Link was ready to believe him. “The princess may have been in Kakariko at that time, but she is no longer. She fled for her own safety, and for the safety of those who would give their lives to protect her. Turn your company back, usurper king.”

Ganondorf was not so easily deterred. He smiled softly and said, “If she is not in the village then you will not be afraid to allow me to search for her. I will even allow you to escort me into every building and home of every village idiot nestled in that valley while my army waits here. If you have nothing to hide you cannot deny me this.”

Shade had no time to consider an answer. Ganondorf urged his horse forward several steps, and Link broke his silence. The Hylian drew out the Master Sword in a blur of movement. The sunlight caught the blade and glanced off of it into Ganondorf’s face. He jerked his horse to a stop with his lips drawn in a grimace.

“You will never find her,” Link growled at Ganondorf.

“Link--” Shade attempted to quiet his apprentice, but Link overrode him.

“This land does not belong to you,” Link continued while his enemy looked on in mild surprise and mounting irritation. “Nor will its people ever bow to you.”

“Link, that’s enough--”

“I will never allow you to take Princess Zelda while I still draw breath. I will die before I allow you to enter Kakariko--”

_“Siler, eowfol!”_ Shade snapped, momentarily falling into a far older dialect. His eyes were wide, and his voice was strained in fear. Link cut off his words at the sound of them. He saw his master’s terrified gaze, and he realized he had said too much.

Ganondorf was laughing quietly to himself. “So…” he whispered amongst his dark chuckles. “She _is_ still in Kakariko.” In a louder, carrying voice to Shade, he said, “Your apprentice’s folly will cost the lives of many, swordsman. I will have my army burn Kakariko Village to ashes for your lies. _Stalfos!_ Ready to charge!” Ganondorf retreated back to his army to rally them. 

Link shook his head. Angry tears grew in the corners of his eyes. “I’m sorry. I got carried away.”

“It’s all right, Link,” Shade soothed. “Things were bound to come to a battle anyway. If Ganondorf hadn’t found Zelda do you think he would have calmly walked away? It’s better to have the fight here than within the village where innocents could be hurt.”

_“Archers!”_ Ganondorf’s shout rang clear across the empty field. Shade and Link turned wide eyes upon the stalfos army to see the back line raise notched arrows toward the sky. 

“Navi, hide,” Link ordered. His fairy was floating around him in idle circles, but at his command she dove into the safety of a saddle bag.

“Shields--” Shade started to say as he pulled his own off of his back.

But Link shook his head. “And leave Epona to the fate of a pincushion?”

_“Fire!”_ Ganondorf ordered, and the arrows were released with synchronized twangs of bowstrings. 

Shade looked between the arching arrows and his apprentice, who still only had his sword drawn. “Link! Protect yourself! Flee or--”

Link slashed the Master Sword in an angled arc. Shade saw the glow of magic on the blade in the brief second before the magic was sent whipping through the air towards the arrows. The arc of magic widened as it traveled, and it took out the greater part of the arrows in mid-air; disintegrating them as if they were nothing but sugar grains in water. Arrows not struck down by the magic sailed harmlessly down to either side of the two swordsmen.

Shade lowered his shield in slight surprise. “That was good thinking.”

Ganondorf bellowed in rage and ordered his army to charge. The three dozen stalfos rushed forward with flamberges high in the air. Arrows from the archers started to fly at will. Link and Shade charged forward atop their mounts to get under the arrows, and they crashed against the sea of bone and armor with their weapons singing through the air. 

Sword biting bone; blades crashing against shields; roars of pain, anger, and panic. Whinnies and clatters and the scent of magic… Link’s senses were flooded with the battle. He soon forgot the feeling of the hilt in his left hand, and the shield braced on his right arm. His body numbed itself, but his mind stayed sharp. He parried and retaliated on instinct, never stopping to allow an enemy to take either him or his mount out of commission. He was all too aware of his lack of protection; all too aware of his handicap, which nearly cost him a limb more than once. 

Minutes into the fray, Link lost Shade. When he next found the swordsman, he saw Ganondorf had engaged Shade in battle. Their horses pranced around each other, circling and turning, while their blades met again and again.

With Ganondorf occupying Shade, the stalfos now turned their collective attention to Link. They swarmed around him, flamberges flashing in the sun. Epona reared, and Link flipped off of her to avoid injury. He spurred her on with a sharp slap to a haunch before the monsters could close around her. She fled the scene of battle, leaving behind only her rider and Navi, who had escaped the saddle bag at the last moment. Link wasn’t pleased with this development, and he shouted at Navi to fly to safety.

Link saw Navi flash in the corner of his bad eye. Against the near-darkness, her light was like a burst of fire. He turned his head to the right to focus on her, and he recognized what kind of boon the fairy was proving herself to be. A flamberge--until now unseen by Link--nearly took off the Hylian’s head. He raised his shield in time to deflect the blow before swinging out his sword to take out the stalfos that had initiated the attack. 

More stalfos swarmed in towards Link, and whenever he saw Navi flash in his right peripheral he followed her guidance without second thoughts. His blade found bone again and again while he moved through the sea of stalfos. He flowed between swords with the dance-like elegance he was taught by Mikau, and he barreled past shields to take out his enemies with the raw power he had honed with Darunia. And when that wasn’t enough, his skills in agility gained from Nabooru and Impa, and the bow gifted to him by Saria, always guaranteed him an edge.

Locked in battle against Shade, Ganondorf was not oblivious to Link’s performance. Even badly outnumbered he was holding his own. “You should be proud of the boy, swordsman,” Ganondorf said when his blade and Shade’s met in a shove. “When he dies it won’t be because he failed to do his best, but only because he finally met his better.”

“I _am_ proud of him,” Shade snapped. “And he’s no boy. He’s a man--a hero. And he’s going to defeat you because you will never be his better.”

Ganondorf grinned and replied, “For today, it is enough that I am better than you.”

Shade didn’t see the magic building in Ganondorf’s free hand until it was lifted up to his face. The dark energy passed over his head and shoulders, and he reeled back with a cry of pain. The magic felt like needles piercing every inch of his skin--and he was supposed to be little more than a ghost! 

Beneath Shade, his horse reared in terror when errant magic traveled over her hide. With a laugh, Ganondorf urged his own mount away in the direction of Kakariko Village. Shade fought hard to regain control over Daze. Once he had all four of her hooves steady on the ground, he took off after Ganondorf.

Only two stalfos remained of the once three-dozen-strong army. Link dispatched the remaining undead soldiers with a last slice of his blade through their necks. His body ached from exertion, but he put his pains aside to seek out his master. He saw Shade chasing after Ganondorf on horseback, who was making a break for Kakariko. Link whistled for Epona. 

The third note of Link’s whistle died on his lips when he saw Ganondorf leap into a dark portal. One moment, the Evil King was racing for the river on his stallion. The next, the black horse had leapt over the river, disappearing halfway across into a swirling mass of dark magic. Only Ganondorf’s victorious laugh lingered in the field. 

#

Impa’s front door opened with a bang under Ganondorf’s boot, and she and Zelda jerked within their hiding place. They watched the Gerudo stride in with heavy footsteps. He stopped in the middle of the main room, and his eyes swept the house. A glow bloomed to life against the back of his right hand.

A similar glow was mirrored on Zelda’s right hand, and she froze when Ganondorf’s eyes went to the shadows under the stairs that were hiding the women. He knew. Of course he did. Impa had tried, but even the power of a Sheikah and Sage was nothing in the face of the power of the gods.

Ganondorf held out his glowing hand in invitation. “I’ll give you a chance to come quietly, my lady.”

Impa pulled at Zelda’s clothes when the princess stood up, and Zelda did a rare thing. She exercised her authority over the Sheikah.

“You will allow me to go,” was all Zelda said, but her expression spoke the order plainly. “I have to go,” she continued. “Don’t I? You know this, Impa. You said as much when you told me about Link’s destiny. I have a destiny, too. I have to play my part.” She swallowed, and her voice hardened. “But I won’t stand idle. I’ll do my best to help him. Now let me go.”

Impa’s hands fell away, and Zelda stepped out of her nurse’s protections. A whispered prayer followed her. 

An arm’s reach from Ganondorf, Zelda stopped and inclined her head. “Ganondorf,” she greeted in a stiff voice.

“Princess Zelda,” Ganondorf returned. Zelda’s glowing hand fell upon his, and she at once slumped in sleep. The Gerudo caught her, swept her into his arms, and carried her out of the house.

#

Shade pulled Daze short of the river, and the horse whinnied in distress. Where had Ganondorf gone? The opposite shore was empty.

“Shade!” Link called as the clopping of hooves announced Epona’s arrival. Link swung up into the saddle and joined his master on the castle side of the river. “Where did he go? Back to his castle?”

“I don’t know,” Shade replied. He scanned the empty field, littered with the bony remains of the stalfos army. 

“Could he have gone to Kakariko?” Link suggested next. His voice was tense. He hoped this wasn’t true. He--perhaps foolishly--believed Impa’s power would be enough to prevent Ganondorf from capturing Zelda by either normal or magical means. 

Shade didn’t answer the question, but his face tightened. 

Link, unwilling to wait, backed his horse up.

Shade focused on his apprentice. “Link, what are you doing?”

_“Hiyaah!”_ Link spurred Epona with a sharp snap of her reins. The mare charged forward with a whinny, blew past Shade and Daze, and leapt over the Zora River. Upon landing, her back hooves slipped on the wet bank, and for a moment it appeared as if both horse and rider would go into the drink. But Epona recovered, and Link urged her towards the pass to Kakariko Village.

“The idiot!” Shade snapped to no one. He spurred Daze downriver to the stone bridge and crossed over to the other side. Link was halfway to the start of the pass into the valley. _And most likely charging right into a trap,_ Shade thought with mixed anger and concern. His answer to Link’s question wasn’t truthful. Shade knew exactly where Ganondorf’s portal had led, and he feared the princess was now in jeopardy. And if the Evil King could accurately predict Link’s reaction? If he was waiting with more stalfos for the young man to round a blind corner…?

Shade was only halfway to Link when a portal once again bloomed into life in midair. Shade saw Link reach back to replace the sword and shield in his hands with a bow. The young Hylian raised a notched arrow and took steady aim from atop his hurrying horse.

A black stallion burst out of the portal with a whinny. Its hooves landed upon the grass, and under Ganondorf’s relentless urging the horse was at once off across the land, heading straight for Link on the most direct route back to the castle. Later, Shade wondered why Ganondorf didn’t simply transport himself right back to his dark lair. Perhaps the Gerudo wanted this chance to boast his success, for within his dark-armored arms was a bundle of bright color topped by blonde hair.

_“Link, it’s Zelda!”_ Shade shouted. If Link’s arrow struck Ganondorf or his mount when the horse was traveling so fast…

Link heard Shade’s cry before he registered the unconscious form in Ganondorf’s arms. The arrow was released, but a last second’s correction sent it sailing harmlessly by the speeding stallion. 

Ganondorf’s laughter echoed out over the land, and the bones of the stalfos army twitched. In seconds, the pieces of the skeleton soldiers were shifting back together to reform the army. 

Link had wasted energy on destroying the army for naught. Furthermore, his master was in trouble. The stalfos were on the other side of the river, but they were quickly moving across the bridge to surround Shade. Link halted Epona and looked between Shade, trapped by the stalfos; and Ganondorf, who was nearly upon him. 

Ganondorf called out to his army, “No! Leave the swordsman! Raze Kakariko Village to the ground! Leave none alive!”

_“No!”_ Link cried. He drew his sword and spurred Epona again, urging her to intercept Ganondorf. She galloped to meet the stallion, drawing abreast and keeping pace. Link reached out for Zelda.

Ganondorf’s horse turned its head to bite at Epona. The stallion’s teeth drew blood, and Epona jerked in pain. Link’s eyes turned from Zelda for a split second to focus on his horse and regain control, and in that moment Ganondorf took advantage of Link’s distraction. He swung his arm up and back in a powerful blow and caught Link under the chin with an armored forearm. 

Link’s head snapped back, and he tumbled over Epona’s hindquarters to fall to the ground in a daze. Trailing Ganondorf’s laugh, the Gerudo-bred stallion hurried away from Link. With eerie speed and skill--no doubt aided by dark magic--the horse leapt Zora River in a clean jump. 

The stalfos army was heading in the opposite direction. After crossing over the bridge, the skeletons turned their attentions away from Shade and began to make quick progress to Kakariko. Link was already stirring, but he wasn’t aware enough to stop the first couple of stalfos that rushed past him, heading for the pass. 

Shade couldn’t delay anymore. He had to trust the stalfos army to Link. Ganondorf was rushing further and further away with Zelda. After shouting unkind encouragement to Link, telling him to _get his ass moving,_ Shade spurred Daze back across the bridge and took off after the Evil King. He quickly closed in on Ganondorf, trailing only a foot behind. 

That last foot was the hardest to gain, and before long Ganondorf was within a few strides of the broken drawbridge that led to the remains of Castle Town. This close to the ruined center of the kingdom, the grass was dead and black, and the water moved sluggishly, giving off the stench of rot. An unnatural darkness fell over Shade, and he felt a chill run up his spine. 

Ganondorf spared a glance back. He wore a wicked grin. His lips moved, but it was impossible to discern anything over the horses’ falling hooves and their throaty gasps for oxygen. Nonetheless, Shade heard the words in his mind.

_I now know what you are, swordsman._ A laugh echoed behind the words. _Your benefactor has no power here._

Shade didn’t understand Ganondorf’s meaning until he felt Daze pitch forward with a distressed whinny. The mare staggered to her knees, and Shade was sent rolling forward over her head. He tucked his limbs in to avoid injury, and once he had stopped rolling he pushed himself up onto his hands and knees. He could hear Daze crying out in pain and terror, but his vision was spinning from the fall. Shade lowered his head and shook it to clear his thoughts. When he refocused, he looked down at the ground in terrified comprehension. 

The ground was dead. The first truly alive blades of grass were a dozen feet away. The Great Deku Tree’s benign power--a power that was enough to protect Hyrule’s border--was losing to Ganondorf’s darker influence, which was spreading plague-like from Castle Town. Already Shade could feel his existence slipping away. The Great Deku Tree’s power gave him solid form, but when the swordsman sat back on his heels and lifted a hand, he could see through his palm. 

And Daze… Shade’s horse was succumbing far quicker. She thrashed on her side against the ground. Black tendrils like clinging vine were quickly covering her; choking out the strange life she was granted years ago. One hoof, still free of the dark magic, pawed desperately at the ground, leaving behind deep gouges. 

“No! _Daze!”_ Shade gained his feet, but he staggered. A black tendril had crept up around his ankle. He broke free of the magic with a strong kick of his boot and rushed to his horse’s side. Her head was still free of the magic that now covered her like a black blanket. She was being buried alive. Shade dropped to his knees and clawed at the creeping tendrils. His hands passed straight through the magic.

“No…” Shade gained his feet and stared down at his transparent hands. He had to flee; he had no choice, or soon he would be buried and erased by Ganondorf’s magic as well. Already the magic was creeping back up his legs while he stood regarding his vanishing horse. 

“I’m sorry, Daisy,” Shade whispered. He freed his legs, turned away from his horse, and ran back onto land that still had an inkling of benign magic to it. As he fled, he felt a jar of grief at the sound of every distressed whinny that sounded behind him. He was still within earshot when the sounds stopped. 

Every step felt too heavy for Shade. He had regained his solidity, but he felt as if a part of him had died with Daze. _Though in reality, we were both already dead, and have been for some time,_ Shade reminded himself. This thought did little to alleviate his grief. 

There was no sign of Link or Epona in front of the pass to Kakariko. A few stalfos bones lay scattered over the grass. More bones, armor, and discarded flamberges littered the pass when Shade climbed it. Arrows lay broken everywhere or quivered in the wind; their hard heads embedded in the stone walls of the pass. All of the feathered shafts were black--the enemy’s--yet there was no blood, and Shade felt hope stir in him. His steps quickened and grew lighter, but they slowed when he came upon the gate leading to Kakariko. Something was wrong. There was an evil taint to the air, and the sounds of an argument punctured it. Shade broke into a run, and he soon found a group of villagers gathered in the center of Kakariko. 

“Again and again, you’ve brought misfortune to this village! And now you’ve allowed Princess Zelda to be taken!” one man was yelling. His eyes were crazed, and his anger was focused on Link, who was on his knees on the ground. Something didn’t look right to Shade. Link’s hand was at his chest, and his upper body was bowed forward. When Shade drew closer, he saw a dark stain was growing across the front of the Link’s shirt, and a feathered shaft stuck out of his bowed back. Navi was flying around it in distressed circles. 

Another villager--a carpenter with angry tears in his eyes--raised a hammer he was holding. “For letting that foul man take Princess Zelda, I will quicken your death!”

_“Enough!”_ Shade shouted. 

The villager started, and his hand hesitated in its arc. In that moment a brown shadow dove out of the sky and plucked the hammer out of the man’s hand. Kaepora Gaebora’s talons left behind deep gouges in the man’s skin, and he reeled away from Link in pain. The owl dropped the hammer far out of reach and swooped back to land on the ground beside Link. The angry villagers drew back from the abnormally-large bird, and he regarded them all with his sharp eyes. 

“Listen to yourselves!” Kaepora Gaebora spoke in his strange way. “You’re all reeling under Ganondorf’s evil influence! He _wants_ you to hurt Link! Are you so weak as to give in to his dark desire?” 

The villagers passed confused looks amongst each other, and Kaepora Gaebora continued, “If it hadn’t been for Link, this village would have been razed to the ground. I heard Ganondorf give the order. Link could have taken chase after the Evil King along with Shade. He chose instead to stop the stalfos army before any harm could come to Kakariko Village. Do you all understand what kind of choice he had to make? Instead of going after the person he loves most, he took an arrow for all of you.”

The villagers didn’t speak, neither in anger nor thanks, but their eyes cleared, and their tense limbs relaxed.

Shade hurried forward and knelt down in front of his apprentice. Link raised a pale face to him and gasped out, “Zelda…?”

“Gone into Ganondorf’s clutches,” Shade replied. “I’m sorry, Link, but he worked a dark magic over Daisy. I lost her, and I nearly lost myself.” Shade spoke loud enough for all to hear him. Let them redirect their anger at him if they wanted. But the villagers retained their silence, and a few even peeled away from the crowd, crying silent tears for their lost princess. Whatever ideas Ganondorf’s magic had put in their heads were dissipating.

Link coughed and spat blood, and Shade asked, “How bad’s the pain?”

Link managed only another gasp. He blinked away tears of pain and clutched at the arrow shaft sticking out of his chest. 

“Punctured lung,” Shade guessed. It was a grim diagnosis in a darkening world where fairies could no longer roam freely. But surely it couldn’t end like this? With the hero struck down before he could attempt to save Hyrule?

The crowd shifted and parted. An old woman was--rather rudely--forcing her way to the front. When she came into view, she revealed herself as someone of indefinite age. Her eyes and mouth were nearly invisible in the wrinkles in her face, and she had a sharp nose that she jutted towards Link as she raised a bottle of sky-blue potion in her arthritic hands. 

“That demon-man’s attack a week ago took out half my shop and most of my stock, but I still have one ration of blue potion remaining that I kept for emergencies. Get that arrow out of him and take off his weapons and shirt.”

Shade didn’t know the old woman’s plan, but he didn’t argue with her. After Kaepora Gaebora used his beak to snap the arrow at Link’s back, Shade slowly drew out the shaft from the Hylian’s chest. Link gritted his teeth but didn’t cry out, and Shade tried a bit of light humor to ease his mind. “I think even a Goron would have voiced some manner of pain.”

Link managed a ghost of a smile. Once his shirt and equipment were removed, he whispered, “Reputation…” But he didn’t have breath for much more than that.

“Oh, he’ll be screaming soon enough,” the old woman promised. “Lean over, boy. That’s a good lad.”

Link dropped forward onto his palms and exposed the puncture wound in his back to the sun. The old woman moved to his side and tipped the potion bottle’s mouth over the wound. The moment the sky-blue potion met the wound, it began to hiss with an unpleasant smell. The old woman was right; Link soon started to scream. His fingers buried themselves into the soft ground, and it took all of his self-control not to jerk away. 

Shade held Link still and felt spasms of pain work their way through the Hylian’s arms and shoulders. The potion bubbled and smoked, creeping into the wound and coming out on the other side to drip to the grass, where it rapidly evaporated into nonexistence like water drops in a hot pan. When the last of the potion had drained through the wound, it left the skin red and raw, but Shade could already see a difference. The wound’s edges were less tattered, and it was smaller. The potion was doing its job.

The woman pocketed her now-empty potion bottle and nodded in approval at her work. “The wound will be closed within an hour, but he’ll need a night’s rest to fully heal. Do you hear me, boy? No heroics anymore tonight.”

“But Zelda…” Link began in a voice already stronger.

“I said _no,_ Link,” the old woman insisted. “The princess will be fine for one day.”

Link released a sigh of exasperation. His eyes were dark, but he didn’t argue anymore. With Shade’s help, he was able to gain his feet, and he turned to Kaepora Gaebora to thank him for his help.

“You’re welcome, Link,” the owl replied. “Take care, and know that I will still watch over you.”

“Thank you,” Link said again. The owl took off, and once the air had settled, Link addressed the villagers looking on at him. “I’ll save Zelda,” he promised them, simply. They didn’t reply, but Link could feel their confidence in him was restored. 

Shade led Link away to Impa’s house, and behind them the crowd dispersed. Shade only had to half-support Link, as the boy’s strength was already returning, so he had breath to spare for speaking. “Link, when I was fighting Ganondorf he praised you on the skill you had gained. He told me I should be proud of you. And I told him that I _was_ proud of you, Link. I told him that you were no longer a boy, but a man and a hero. And I told him you would defeat him.” 

Shade stopped his and Link’s progress and took a moment to clamp his hands onto Link’s shoulders, looking straight into the young man’s eyes. “I want you to know I have every confidence in your success, Link. But even if you were to fail, it doesn’t matter. Win or lose, you are already the hero I never became. I went after Ganondorf for one princess, and I failed. You took on three dozen stalfos alone to save an entire village, and you succeeded. That is the difference between us.”

“I wasn’t entirely alone,” Link said, and he smiled at the fairy who circled in the air above him. “The arrow would have found my heart if Navi hadn’t been there to warn me. I was able to turn just enough to avoid death.”

Shade smiled at Navi as well. “Then let’s hope your luck and your fairy both hold out through the end. Now come on, let’s get you some rest before that old woman has my neck.”

“Will you take care of Epona?” Link asked Shade once they picked up their walk again. “The horse doctor took her away for treatment. Can you make sure she’s rubbed down and fed once he’s done with her?” Shade nodded, promising to do such. “And can you check on Impa too?” Link added. Again, Shade agreed. “And polish my shield, and clean my sword--”

Shade laughed. “Maybe my words went to your head. Who’s the master here again?” he asked, and Link fell silent with a faint smile on his face. 

#

Hours later, when night had drawn over Kakariko Village, the smile was gone from Link’s lips. He lay in his bed and regarded the ceiling beams above his head with a thoughtful expression. The wound in his chest was closed, but an ache kicked back whenever he took too deep of a breath. There was another ache in his heart and soul as well. Zelda was back for one blissful week. For what felt like an eternity, there were no thoughts of Ganondorf or spreading evil. There was only Zelda--her touch, her smile, her companionship. There were sunny days, warm nights, and the feeling of good cheer in a flourishing village. Link longed for those spots of happiness, and he knew they would never come again unless he stopped Ganondorf once and for all. 

Link sat up and got out of his bed. His chest panged with the movement, but he ignored the pain. He didn’t bother with a shirt or boots; the grass outside was soft, and the night was mild. He was only taking a short walk to clear his head before he returned to rest until morning. 

Navi, asleep on a shelf, never heard Link leave the room. And Impa never stirred from her bed at the sound of Link opening and shutting the front door. Alone with his thoughts, the young Hylian set out in a random direction with his head bowed, and his arms crossed. The moonlight highlighted the raised line of scar tissue running down his chest. 

The reminder of his old wound started Link on a circuitous path through his memories. Over and over again he thought on all that he had done since the day of Ganondorf’s coup. The friends he had made; the skills he had learned; the deeds he had accomplished. He also thought on less positive things--of Mikau’s murder, and the subsequent death of Darcel; of all the times he failed to do enough to stop more bad things from happening; the off-and-on bitterness he harbored towards Shade; the destiny forced upon him, and the Goddesses’ hand in it all. 

_Forgive us._

Link raised his head, although in truth he had noticed the faint green light even before the voice had registered in his mind. There was no accompanying column of light to the heavens, or a powerful wind. She gave off a faint glow, but she appeared more ordinary than her sisters had before. Link could easily discern features in her face, body, and dress. 

“Forgive us,” Farore said again in actual words instead of working through images and feelings. Her tone was of genuine regret.

“I do,” Link said. “I forgive you, though a part of me would prefer not to.” His voice dropped to a whisper. “You _used_ me.”

“We did,” Farore said, nodding her head once, solemnly. “I did.” She raised an arm to hold out an open hand to Link. “Will you walk with me, descendant of the ancient hero?”

“Is this the last trial?” Link asked.

“Your last trial--the trial of Courage---will soon be upon you,” Farore said. “It is something we must discuss. It is within your choice to come with me or not. Regardless of what has been revealed to you through the magic of the mirror shield, you have always had a choice, and will continue to do so. So… Will you walk with me, Link?”

Link nodded, stepped forward, and took the Goddess’s hand.


	28. The Prelude of Light

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Link makes his way to Ganondorf's castle for the final battle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for your support!
> 
> Please enjoy these final two chapters, and I apologize in advance...

# In the Shade of a Hero

### The Prelude of Light

Shade stood in the shadow of a house and watched Link walk away alongside the Goddess Farore. He didn’t call out, or hurry to join them. His role in Link’s destiny was nearly over. But it was strange. He had a strong urge to run up to Farore, take her hand, and… do what, exactly? He didn’t know. The words and feelings were there a second ago. 

Shade frowned and turned away from Farore’s faint glow. He had something to leave behind for Link, and once it was placed, he allowed his feet to lead him to Death Mountain Pass. He climbed it with only the moon to guide him. 

The higher Shade walked, the thinner his existence stretched. The Gorons tended this mountain, and so the Great Deku Tree’s power was somewhat withdrawn. Shade ignored the detached feeling in his head in favor of the view near Death Mountain’s peak. Hyrule was an inky sea with moonlit froth, and so silent that he could hear the creak of the distant windmill in Kakariko. The sound filled him with longing. He wished he had stopped to appreciate small details like that more often when he was alive.

Another sound cut across the windmill’s creaks, and Shade pivoted his head to see a small waterfall of rock fall away from the cliff behind him. A tunnel mouth was revealed, and within its shadows peeked out a fierce face framed by a mane of hair. Darunia nodded when he and Shade met eyes, and the Goron turned back into the tunnel’s darkness.

Shade stood up, brushed the dirt from his pants, and walked into the tunnel. Death Mountain pressed in on him for most of the journey, but when a speck of light appeared at the end of the tunnel, he heard the brush of grass against his boots. The undergrowth thickened with each step taken towards the light, and by the end of the tunnel the chirps of nocturnal insects had overtaken the stone’s silence.

It was the Lost Woods, of course--where things had ended for Shade, and begun for Link. A quiet little clearing greeted the swordsman. The moonlight gave it a warm glow, and errant spirits sailed lazily through the air, trailing ribbons of light. Shade disturbed their paths when he walked to the pool of water at the clearing’s far edge. Saria was seated on the pool’s bank, and Ruto treaded water with her arms folded atop the grass. Shade found it difficult to look at Ruto. Without their shared obligation to Link creating a formal barrier, he was left to flounder in the memories of _his_ Ruto--something else he wished he had appreciated more.

Likely Ruto knew this, for when Shade sat down opposite Saria, the Zora princess placed a hand on his knee and squeezed it in solidarity. Shade dropped his hand on top of hers, and he felt tears burn at the corners of his eyes. He blinked them away and cleared his throat. “Where are the others?”

“Where they should be,” Saria replied. “They’re preparing themselves to offer Link any aid that we can. Ruto and I agreed to stay behind to meet you.”

“Thank you,” Shade said with a grateful nod of his head. “It’s almost time, isn’t it?”

“It _is_ time,” Ruto corrected in a soft voice.

Shade squeezed Ruto’s hand before he drew it away to search a bag on his belt. The pale pink ocarina had a deep crack running down its side, but it was intact. Shade held it out to Saria and said, “I’m sorry I wasn’t worthy of it in my time.”

Saria enveloped the ocarina between her hands. “You’ve earned your worth in _this_ timeline, Link,” she said. 

That name… Shade had to bow his head forward and hide his face in his hands. He remembered the feeling that had come over him when he earlier looked upon Farore. It was longing. He wanted someone to tell him everything was over. He wanted permission to finally rest his head. But even so… “Will I get the chance to see him one last time?” Shade asked after lifting his eyes. “I didn’t say goodbye.”

Ruto nodded, and Saria replied, “We’ll all be there for when he needs us. And when it’s over, you’ll have earned your reward, Link.”

“My reward?”

“A chance to live the life you were denied,” Ruto elaborated. 

“And what of the Link in _this_ timeline?”

“That’s not for us to decide,” Ruto replied, and she added, “It’s time, Link.”

Saria blew into the ocarina. The notes came out of the fractured instrument slightly off, but the song was there. When the last note had echoed away, Saria lowered the ocarina with a wistful smile and regarded the empty space in front of her. 

Ruto’s hand had dropped back to the grass. “He looked relieved,” she remarked.

“I think he was,” Saria agreed. “He was wandering for too long.”

“You know, it’s funny,” Ruto spoke up after a long silence between her and Saria. “Before I came to be aware of my role as a Sage, I remember growing up with the utmost reverence for the Goddesses. And when my other life’s memories came to me, I thought at first that reverence could only grow. But all I’ve seen since then has given me more and more reasons to _hate_ the Goddesses. They’re not passive like Lord Jabu-Jabu, or your Great Deku Tree. They’re still active eons after they made the world. So why isn’t it any better for their contributions?”

“Perhaps it’s because the world is our responsibility,” Saria mused. “And every time we fail in that responsibility, the Goddesses send their envoys to plow over our mistakes and start from fresh seeds.”

“But you can’t till the same land over and over and expect better results,” Ruto said. 

“This is a new garden,” Saria reminded Ruto. “The Master Sword in Link’s hand is the plow blade, and his footsteps press the seeds into the dirt. If it fails, it will only be because we don’t tend to it.”

Ruto nodded. “We should get to tending, then. I can feel the others. They’re ready and waiting.” 

“Yes,” Saria said. She could feel the tugs on her spirit. “Link is doing his best despite the odds against him. We must do our best as well.”

#

At Link’s back, the secret entrance to the hall of heroes closed, once again sealing his ancestors’ graves behind a wall of stone. Link leaned against the same wall and bowed his head. He stood there for several minutes, still and silent, until a cold breeze reminded him of his bare chest and feet. Suppressing a shiver, Link straightened his back and pushed away from the wall. He wiped his wet cheeks dry with the back of a hand as he walked to the graveyard’s exit, and Impa’s house in the village proper beyond. He had to leave for Ganondorf’s castle tonight. He couldn’t wait until morning. If he did, the lives of anyone who wanted to join him would be put at risk.

Sneaking back into Impa’s house was easier than sneaking out. But while Impa still rested, Navi was awake. The fairy was resting atop a folded set of clothes that were on Link’s bed. She rose up into the air when Link walked in, and she hovered over the clothes until the Hylian stepped close enough for her to settle upon his shoulder. 

Link recognized the cut of a Kokiri tunic before he had fully unfolded the garments. But the clothes on his bed were of a different make. The green color was darker, and the fabric was rougher to the touch--not uncomfortable, but rather hardier. There was a hat to match, and a pair of tan pants. New boots rested on the floor by the bed, and there was a shirt of chainmail. Link managed a small smile when he ran his fingers over the metal hoops of the mail. 

“Do you think he had the decency to wash the tunic before handing it down to me?” Link asked his fairy companion. She twitched her wings in confusion, and the Hylian chuckled. “Never mind, Navi. It was only a joke.” His manner hardened. “Are you ready for what lies ahead?”

Navi took off into the air, zoomed around Link’s head for several loops, and settled down onto the open palm he offered her. “I’ll take that as a yes,” Link said while Navi’s soft light warmed his hand. 

Before getting changed, Link first drew a bath for himself. He didn’t waste time or effort to heat the water, and it numbed him from head to toe while he went about washing. But the act of drying himself off and feeling his body stir back to life bit by bit as his blood warmed up had a peculiar attraction. To Link, it felt as if he was being born again; awakening to himself little by little--much like he had done over the course of the past eighteen years.

The new clothes and mail fit like a well-worn glove, and the leather of the boots was soft enough to be both flexible and resilient. Once he was dressed--complete with the mirror shield, his bow and quiver, and the Master Sword--Link studied himself in a full-length mirror. The person that looked back at him was unrecognizable, but also familiar. Satisfied, Link turned away from his reflection and headed out of the house.

Epona nickered when Link entered her stall. On her shoulder was a bandage to protect her bite wound from dirt. Link trailed his fingers along a ragged edge of gauze while Epona mouthed the tip of his left ear with her velvety lips.

“What about you, Epona?” Link asked the mare. “Are you ready for what lies ahead?”

Like Navi, Epona could not speak. But to Link’s surprise, she bobbed her head up and down several times and scuffed an impatient hoof. 

Link pressed his forehead against the side of Epona’s broad neck. He inhaled slowly and deeply; drawing in the scent of horse; letting it fill his head. He saw a wide paddock branching off of a stable by a white castle. He smelled fresh dirt kicked up in the wake of pounding hooves. He heard a gentle, loving voice by the fence, calling him in for lunch. 

Link opened his eyes, and the vision faded. He prepared Epona for departure. 

At such a late hour there was no one to see Link ride out of the village, but when he passed beneath Kakariko’s oldest tree on his way to the gate, he thought he heard a voice above him. Perhaps it was just the wind in the boughs. Or maybe it was a whispered blessing from a much older tree. Link kept his opinion on the matter to himself. 

Once Link and Epona reached the bottom of the pass and stepped onto Hyrule Field, the rider stopped his horse and looked out over the landscape. It glowed under a near-full moon and the light of the stars. Lit up in the gray light, it was almost as if a pall of darkness had never blighted the land. Everything looked pure and untouched--shined to perfection.

“What do you say, Epona?” Link asked. The mare snorted and tossed her head in approval, and Link, with a smile on his face, urged her into a gallop that took them over the Zora River bridge, up a slight slope, and on a looping path around the borders of the wide field. Keeping Lon Lon Ranch to his right, Link guided Epona along dirt paths and over short fences. He straightened up in his saddle at one point and closed his eyes while the wind swept through his bangs and past his ears. He could still feel and hear the life in the world around him. Ganondorf hadn’t succeeded yet, and Link was determined to see the Evil King’s efforts not only stopped, but reversed as well. Hyrule would see light again, the dormant life would awaken, and everything would go back to the way it was before. 

On the second half of their ride around the field, Link slowed Epona down to a steady walk so that she didn’t arrive overtaxed to what remained of Castle Town. When Link stopped his horse before the buckled drawbridge some time later, he found there wasn’t much remaining of the place he had once called home. The curtain wall’s vast entrance was cracked and in shambles; the pennants above it were ripped, and the drawbridge was sunk into the water.

After navigating the moat, Link guided Epona to the town center. Things were worse here. He marked each scorched shell of a house or shop, and his heart ached for the lives lost. The few buildings that had survived the razing were no better off with smashed windows, broken doors, and collapsed roofs. 

Epona neighed and halted. Her hooves left the stone path and rose up a few inches before coming back down with hard clops. Link snapped his eyes away from a desecrated statue of a Goddess and searched his surroundings. Somehow, he had become nearly surrounded by strange, shambling creatures. Hylian in form, they had leathery skin the color of mud, and they marked Link with empty eye sockets. Their mouths were drawn down into a permanent look of despair, and they stretched withered, elongated arms towards Link and his horse. 

“Epona, get moving!” Link snapped, but his horse was paralyzed. Her body shook beneath him, and her eyes were fixed on the creatures closest to her. More of them were emerging from dark alleys and from behind the bared frames of the buildings. Link saw that in short time he would be entirely surrounded. With the greatest reluctance, he snapped a curse at his mount and dug his heels sharply into her sides. 

Epona jolted out of her paralysis and reared with a terrified whinny. Link scrambled to maintain his hold, but his hands slipped from the reins, and he fell out of the saddle when Epona sped away on panicked hooves. Link looked up in time to see her burst through a blockade of the undead creatures. Several of them latched onto her like burs as she galloped out of sight.

_“Epona!”_ Link called. He had time for little more than a breathless whistle before he was surrounded by the creatures. Their dead, empty gazes locked onto his eyes, and it was as if the life was being sucked out of his very body. He was so overcome with this terrifying feeling that he found himself unable to move. His mind screamed at him, _Draw your sword! Look away!_ But his body wasn’t responding to his mind’s commands. 

A bright ball of light flew into Link’s line of sight--Navi. Her aura’s intensity drew Link’s attention, snapping him out of his paralyzed state. He shook himself from head to foot in a shudder of revulsion. The despair had drawn back, and he was able to close his eyes and draw his sword. 

Link could sense the undead beings close to him even if he couldn’t see them. He waited until the terrible feeling of their gazes was almost overpowering, and he swung the Master Sword in a complete circle. Thuds traveling up the blade and through the hilt told Link he had hit his marks. When he opened his eyes a moment later, he found the immediate area around him littered with halved corpses. 

But there were still more of the undead creatures shambling their way towards Link. They shuffled around dormant flower planters and crawled through the dry fountain; their arms always reaching and stretching towards the Hylian. Link was undaunted. He was wise to their paralyzing trick now. It worked on fear, and he no longer feared the creatures. His fierce eyes met the closest one gaze-to-gaze, and he charged forward with his sword at the ready and a rallying cry on his lips. 

Link found the creatures fell easily under his blade. Perhaps in larger numbers they would be a greater threat, but he could see their strengths lay in shock value only. Link saw worse things than walking corpses over his short weeks of training. He had faced a terrifying dragon, he saw friends die as a direct or indirect result of his actions, and he saw the hopeless darkness in his own heart when all had seemed lost. Compared to those hardships, these soulless vessels were nothing to tackle.

Link stopped when the last undead creature lay slain on the ground. His blade was clean; the beings were as dry and flimsy as paper. But in defeat a few of their mouths leaked a strange, greenish fluid. Link raised an eyebrow, wondering what the fluid could be. It looked dangerous, and he wasn’t stupid enough to investigate beyond a quick glance. “It’s probably poison,” Link muttered as he sheathed his blade. 

Link’s guess was confirmed when he heard a pained whinny behind him. Navi tensed in the air and sank into the Hylian’s collar. Link could feel her shaking against his neck, and he didn’t want to turn around because this was going to be another hardship that would haunt him; and he didn’t want to see it, but he couldn’t block out the clopping sound of unsteady hooves…

Link turned in time to see Epona go down onto her front legs. Her knees scraped the broken stone of the road, and the flesh opened and began to bleed. More blood coursed down her from a dozen different bites--many of them congregated around the small wound she had suffered at the teeth of Ganondorf’s stallion. Perhaps the blood had drawn the creatures to her like a corpse would draw flies. 

And Link could see now that Epona would soon be nothing more than a walking corpse herself. When she gained her feet and took a few clumsy steps forward, her muscles twitched and trembled under her thinning skin. The saddle hung loose and to the side on her rapidly deteriorating body. She was becoming one of the monsters scattered in pieces at Link’s feet.

“Epona…” Link walked forward and caressed the mare’s nose when he was within reach. Her skin was cold, and her eyes were sunken. The vertebrae of her neck and back stuck out when she stretched her head to feel his hands sooner. Link ran his hands over Epona’s neck and through her blood-matted mane. He leaned in and pressed a kiss to the white patch of hair between her eyes. The next second he shoved her away and backed up. 

“Why did you run away?” Link snapped at Epona. He needed this; he needed the anger. Only with anger could he draw his bow and an arrow. _“I would have protected you!”_ Link shouted. His rage centered the notched arrow, but despite his show, his ire wasn’t directed at Epona. He was directing it at himself. 

_If I had left her at Kakariko Village._

_If I hadn’t spurred her._

_If I had held onto the reins._

_If If If--_

Epona staggered forward, stretching her neck out again. There was still a glimmer of life in her eyes. The light didn’t completely fade even when an arrow struck where Link had marked her forehead with a kiss moments earlier. Epona collapsed in a lifeless heap. 

Link dropped to his knees a second later. His bow clattered to the ground beside him when he abandoned it to cover his face with both hands. He raged and cried at the unfairness of everything until finally his bitterness was spent. It left him feeling as hollow as the monsters he had defeated. 

Link picked up his bow and stowed it under his shield. When he wiped away the wetness from his cheeks, he found his gauntlet stained with red tears. He could no longer see even a faint glimmer of light in his right eye. 

“Navi,” Link called softly, and his fairy companion rose out of his collar to hover before him. “Stay close to me. I mean it. No acts of daring or loyalty. I don’t want to lose you, too. Do you understand me?”

Navi, of course, gave no verbal reply. Link waited for a signal of agreement--a bob in the air, or a cheerful twitch of gossamer wings. Instead, the fairy slipped back into Link’s collar with as little fanfare as when she had emerged. Link didn’t press her for acknowledgement. He had to hope she had taken his request seriously. 

The walk to what was once Hyrule Castle was quiet, dark, and unrecognizable. When Link reached the end of the path, he saw that the white stone walls and green gardens were gone. Now a crater of lava was sunk into the land--birthed by the ground that had slowly cracked over the weeks under Ganondorf’s spreading evil influence. A warped, black-stoned castle sat suspended over the fiery pit on an island of dark land. Link stared at the floating structure with a look of terrified awe. If Ganondorf had enough power to keep such a structure afloat, what chance did Link have against him?

_No, stop right there,_ Link chided himself. He wasn’t surprised to find this motivational voice in his head sounded like Shade. _If you start to doubt yourself, it’s all over. All you can do is keep moving forward, do your best, and trust in your friends and the Goddesses. Zelda is waiting for you inside that castle. You should allow nothing to keep you from rejoining her._

“Nothing will keep me from rejoining her,” Link repeated to himself. “Nothing will stop me from saving this land from Ganondorf’s dark grip.” With a steadying deep breath, Link approached the edge of the pit. Far out beyond any jump, the open maw that was the entrance to Ganondorf’s castle mocked him. “But how am I supposed to cross?” Link wondered aloud. He tried using Farore’s Wind, but something blocked him--something like an invisible wall. 

_We’ll help you, Link,_ spoke a voice in Link’s mind. He concentrated on this new voice, and it became a chorus of voices, all of them pledging their aid. A light blossomed in the open air in front of Link between him and the dark castle. It brightened and spread out, and Link was forced to shield his face with an arm when the light burst apart. Once the glare had subsided, Link lowered his arm and found a shining bridge arching the span to the castle. It was transparent, and it flashed in colors like light through a prism. Link took a tentative step onto the bridge and was pleased to find it supported his weight.

_We will be unable to help you much once you are inside the castle, Link,_ spoke a voice--only one this time. Link recognized it as Saria’s. _But if you can find Princess Zelda and free her, we can combine our strength with hers and banish Ganondorf to the Dark Realm._

“And then Hyrule will be saved,” Link finished.

_Yes._

“Okay,” Link said, nodding. “Come on, Navi,” he called. The fairy was inspecting the surface of the bridge. Now she zoomed back up and nestled herself in Link’s collar. He couldn’t see her light, but he could feel her warmth against his neck and, with new confidence, he walked across the bridge.

#

A magic window allowed Ganondorf to watch from his throne as Link disappeared into the open entrance of the castle. An aged, feminine voice spoke to his left, reiterating what he had witnessed. “The child has breached the castle and is climbing the central tower.”

A second aged voice on the Evil King’s right asked, “Would you like us to take care of him?”

Ganondorf didn’t yet acknowledge his mothers. He was watching the view in front of him. Link was climbing a set of stairs. His head turned often to take in as much of the dark surroundings as he could. He favored his left too often. Did this mean his vision was completely gone in the right eye? Ganondorf felt a confused mixture of pity and triumph to see this disadvantage in his enemy.

“My lord?” prompted the voice on the left.

Ganondorf straightened in his chair and released a soft sigh. His eyes stayed fixed on the green-clad young man now cautiously approaching a door. “Not yet,” the Evil King replied. “Send an iron knuckle first. Let’s see what he makes of that.”

“Are we playing games now?” asked the voice on the right, but she sounded pleased with the idea. 

#

Another empty, circular room. Link sighed and looked around, studying it. Four doors, one of which was the one he had just entered through. Two of the doors were likely locked, leaving the last one as his way forward. If this setup of rooms and staircases was supposed to be some sort of labyrinth, someone had taken pains to make sure Link was always moving in the right direction. 

“I don’t like this feeling of being led, Navi,” Link muttered to his fairy. Navi was flying now, sometimes trailing Link, sometimes leading the way. The two companions had come across no hostiles and few barriers, and the fairy felt no need to hide. 

“Keep your guard up,” Link added, both to Navi and himself, when he stepped up to the only other unlocked door. He put his hand on the knob and prepared to open it, but he stopped when he felt a low vibration. It was short and intense, and it traveled through the floor and made the door tremble in its frame. Link paused, listening hard with his sensitive ears, and he felt the vibration repeat itself again. And again. And again, growing more powerful each time.

“It’s almost like… footsteps,” Link muttered. He pressed an ear to the door and closed his eyes in concentration. He could hear faint, metallic clangs along with the thudding vibrations. The sounds stopped almost as soon as he stilled to listen. Link’s brow furrowed in a frown, and the next moment his eyes snapped open in alarm when he heard the whistle of a blade cutting air. He jerked his head back an instant before the curved edge of an axe burst through the door. The blade stopped an inch from Link’s nose, and he staggered back with a cry of alarm. 

The blade was retracted, and through the crack in the door Link caught sight of shining black armor moving over a large body. Something grunted with effort, and with an explosion of wood the door was obliterated under a second, more powerful blow of the axe. Bits of wood spun away through the air while the remaining bulk of the door fell over to be crushed beneath the footfalls of the heavily armored knight that strode into the room. 

Link stared into the empty eyeholes of the knight’s helmet, and he knew this was some manifestation of sorcery. That didn’t make the knight any less dangerous. When Link attempted to get by it to the open doorway, the knight swung its heavy axe in a surprisingly quick movement. The axe was a blur in the air, and Link flipped back out of its range in the nick of time. He stuck the landing and at once drew his sword and shield. He would have to destroy the knight if he wanted to continue without this deadly pursuer on his heels. 

The knight advanced with its axe held in both hands. Link noticed the knight’s armor slowed its movement. The Hylian thought back to his training on Death Mountain with the Gorons. They were slow too, and they had used this knowledge of themselves to train Link on how to use his speed against similar foes. The key was to strike fast and quickly move away before his opponent could dish out a powerful blow. But with all of the knight’s armor, those strikes would have to be very precise, hitting at the weak kinks and exposed joints of the plates. 

Link moved in and jabbed at the knight. His blade’s point hit home, detaching part of a plate. Link had to at once flip back out of range when his enemy raised its axe and brought it down in a powerful slice. The blade bit into stone, and the knight paused for a moment to free it. 

Link saw a chance. He circled around the knight, shield up for protection. The stars and moon on the mirror shield’s surface reflected in the room’s torchlight and danced over the knight’s armor. Link feinted, and his enemy once again tried an overhead blow with its axe. The Hylian dodged the attack easily and got in several slices of his own while the knight struggled to free its weapon from the stone floor.

Again and again Link circled, dodged, and attacked. Navi showed him the weak points in the armor to strike, and soon the floor was littered in plates of black armor. The knight was like an onion; each layer of armor removed revealed more lying beneath. Soon the knight appeared to be half its original girth, and with this lightened load came quicker feet.

Link wasn’t prepared when his enemy broke into a much faster jog. It advanced at twice its previous speed, and swung out its axe in two quick swipes. Link brought up his shield, but the blow that landed on it sent him flying back into a wall. He hit the stone hard and collapsed to the floor with a grunt of pain. Quick vibrations through the floor told him his enemy was wasting no time in advancing again. 

Link gained his feet and shifted away to avoid a brutal beheading when the axe slashed down at him. He tried to reevaluate the situation, but already he had to concentrate on dodging yet another series of blows. The small room was against Link. The knight’s axe had a longer reach than the Hylian’s sword, and it could span half of the room’s width, leaving Link no room to get around to the knight’s back where he might be able to land a hit.

At that moment, Link noticed Navi. She was doing her best to stay flush against the knight’s chest armor. Through the cracks of the layered plates, a pulsing red light shined out. Navi’s light matched the rhythm perfectly, drawing Link’s attention to it. He nodded to her, and she flew out of the way. 

Link stopped and stood still to allow the knight to close the distance between them. He waited until the last possible moment when he saw the knight’s arm twitch as it prepared to pull the axe back for a swing. He dodged--only this time he moved in closer instead of to the side. He rolled under the swinging axe, stopped in a low crouch beneath the knight’s looming girth, and thrust his blade up between two plates of armor. 

The Master Sword struck the heart of the pulsing light, and Link felt a powerful shudder travel through his blade. The red light’s pulse stuttered, dimmed, and grew intensely bright. Link closed his eyes against the red glare, and he heard his enemy bellow in pain before it exploded. Plates of armor ricocheted off of the walls and bounced across the floor with ear-splitting clangs. When the final piece had settled, the remains burned away in black flames, leaving Link to collect his breath in a ringing silence. 

Navi settled onto the hilt of the Master Sword, which Link had braced against the floor, point down. Her wings twitched when Link raised his head to smile tiredly at her. “That was fun, huh? Oh man, if Darunia could see me now, he’d be cursing me out for being so out of breath. But I was really getting worried there, and I think I overexerted myself. But don’t tell him that, okay, Navi? I have a reputation to uphold.”

Although Navi couldn’t reply, talking to her helped Link to regain his earlier motivation. In little time, he was on his feet again, ready to continue. He replaced his sword and shield, and picked his way across the debris of the shattered door. 

#

“That vile little brat!” Koume screeched when she saw the iron knuckle’s demise.

“He must die!” Kotake added.

“Then take care of it yourselves,” Ganondorf ordered. His mothers looked to him in surprise, and he nodded at the magic window. “You heard me.”

The witches passed a look, and Koume said, “Very well, Ganondorf.”

“We’ll do what you couldn’t,” Kotake added with a chuckle. She and her sister vanished in twin bursts of light.

Ganondorf glowered in the wake of the remark. He found he had no desire to watch his mothers make fools of themselves. He knew Link would defeat them, and he felt no remorse. They had plagued his life long enough. They had _ruined_ it.

The Triforce of Power begged to differ. Was this such a bad life? He had Hyrule, he had a throne again, he had--

_Nothing._ Ganondorf finished. He had more as a castle guard than he ever would in this empty castle. 

The Triforce of Power tried to argue, but Ganondorf ignored its voice. He stood up from his chair and vanished into the shadows of the room. He came to the highest room in his tower--his chambers. A piano, salvaged from the castle’s music room, sat against the wall in the light of the barrier that held Zelda. She was awake now, and she glared at Ganondorf when he entered the room, but she didn’t speak.

That was all right. Their Triforce pieces said plenty. Their joint ambiance reminded Ganondorf that he had never found the Triforce of Courage. He sat down on the piano’s bench while his mind turned over where it may have gone. It was very possible that the owner had died, and the piece had returned to the Goddesses. He might need to revisit the Sacred Realm when this business with Link was over.

#

Link entered a new room in his climb up the tower, and two female voices echoed laughter from the shadows. He stopped and stood still when two old witches walked into his path. Their olive skin tone and ornamental clothes told Link they were of Gerudian descent. They appeared to be sisters--twin sisters--although one sported hair of flame, and the other had hair of frost. 

“We won’t allow you to take one step closer to our Ganny,” the fire-haired witch said.

“’Ganny?’” Link repeated. The memory came to him after a short pause. Ganondorf had mentioned having two mothers. He had also mentioned they were trouble. Impa had said something about a pair of witches as well. That was only months ago. Had such a short time passed since Link’s breach into the castle?

The witch on the right brandished a broom at Link, and he was pulled out of his thoughts. He saw that the bristles steamed in a frost that matched its wielder’s hair. “This fresh kid thinks he can take us!” the witch remarked in an amused voice, and she fired off a stream of ice magic at Link.

Link reacted on instinct, and he pulled out his mirror shield in defense. The ice stream struck the polished surface of the shield and angled away at twice the speed and power. It hit the fire-haired witch, and with a scream of pain and fear she was sent flying back. Her body froze before she had completed her journey through the air, and when she hit the floor she shattered into thousands of icy pieces.

_“Koume!”_ the ice-haired witch screamed, grief-stricken. She flew over to the remains of her sister and began to gather them up as if hoping to put Koume back together, but it was useless. She whirled around and glared at Link. “You’ll pay for that!” she screeched. “For killing my sister I, Kotake, will freeze you to your soul!”

Another stream of ice shot towards Link, and once again he raised his shield to reflect the blow. He was dismayed to learn that Kotake was immune to her own magic. When the reflected ice hit her, she simply shrugged it off before she spread her arms out to her sides. An icy wind snuffed out the torchlight in the room, throwing it into complete darkness. Kotake’s devious laughter echoed.

_Don’t panic, don’t panic,_ Link told himself even while Navi huddled in his collar, shaking with fright. _You can do this. You’ve trained blindfolded before, and this is no different._ Focused again, Link stopped looking for any source of light and instead turned his attention to what he could hear and sense in the air around him. The room’s dimensions pressed against his eardrums, and between him and the wall he tracked a separate movement through the dark. He prepared to engage the witch.

Kotake’s presence shifted in an instant. She went from being to Link’s right to standing far behind him. Link was thrown off, but it was too late to react, and he felt a brush of cold wind at his back. 

The ice magic punched into Link and sent him to his knees. He gasped and felt cold air be drawn into his lungs, numbing them; paralyzing them. 

“You are going to die here alone,” giggled Kotake’s voice. 

Ice worked over Link’s folded legs. It encased them in a hard shell, and pinned them to the ground. 

“It’s the least you deserve for threatening Ganondorf, and for killing my sister,” Kotake added in a harsher tone.

Link tried to draw breath, but his chest was being squeezed as the ice advanced up his arms and over his torso. Navi… Where was Navi? Had she escaped this icy prison? Link cast his good eye out in search of her light, but all he could see was darkness. 

Kotake’s voice continued to taunt the Hylian. “You are going to die a lonely, cold death, and you will never know happiness or warmth again.”

Warmth. Yes. Link needed warmth. He raised his head a little higher, but his neck was frozen in place, and the most he could do was open his mouth in a wordless cry for help. The ice slipped past his parted lips and moved down his throat. 

_No…_

This couldn’t be happening. He had to save Hyrule. He had to save his friends and loved ones. He had to stop Ganondorf and reunite with Zelda.

_Zelda…_

The princess’s warm smile filled Link’s mind, and pushed back the darkness that was closing in on it. Her laughter--gentler and kinder than Kotake’s--swelled within him, and he felt a bead of warmth against his chest. What was that?

_The sapphire!_

Link saw it now-- _felt_ it. Zelda’s gift to him: the gemstone hanging beneath his tunic. He could remember its brilliant blue color, and he could see it poised between Zelda’s lips. She had taken it into her mouth, playfully, one night not so long ago. Each kiss she had pressed to his chest was a mixed sensation of the gem’s cool surface and the heat of her lips. 

Now the sapphire was burning with that same heat. It reaffirmed Link’s goal to save the people and land he loved, and he focused all of his dwindling concentration on the small bit of heat he could feel at his center.

Fire burst out of Link’s very skin, buffeting him with the heated air of its passing as it melted and evaporated the ice that encased him. He slumped forward, gasping to regain his breath, while Din’s Fire spread around him in a growing dome of heat and flame. In the darkness and flickering firelight, Link heard Kotake scream in alarm and pain at great length until the sound of her voice cut out altogether. 

Navi pulled at Link’s ear, and he raised his head. The torches were relit; the cold and darkness were driven back--for now. He gained his feet with only a slight stumble and took a few calming breaths. He didn’t want to think about what just happened. He didn’t want to think about the lives he had just ended. _Just let it go,_ Link told himself. Once he was mentally prepared, he made his way to the next door and opened it. A staircase, winding out of sight, sat beyond the doorway. He started up the stone steps with Navi keeping pace beside him.

“I have a feeling we’re close, Navi,” Link said after a minute’s climb. “I swear I can sense Ganondorf with each step--and Zelda, too. She’s probably close to him--maybe even in the same room. I hope he hasn’t hurt her. If he has--” Link stopped. He had taken three more steps, and the curving staircase now straightened out to reveal a set of large double doors on a landing a few more steps up. He could hear piano music. It was a gentle melody--a lullaby, almost. He recognized it from Zelda’s countless music lessons.

Link climbed the last steps with slow care, and when he stepped up to the doors he put a hand out against the wood. “Here,” Link murmured. “Just beyond this door…” His hand jerked away as if shocked, but he sucked in a deep breath, squared his shoulders, and took hold of the iron handles of the doors. They were heavy, but Link’s strength was enough to coax them open, and their weight took care of the rest halfway through their arcs, driving them into the walls with resounding bangs. 

The room’s hangings were black, and the stone was blacker. A red carpet led from the door to a fireplace. To the left of the carpet, Zelda sat within a blue crystal with her arms resting atop her folded knees. She looked up at the sound of the doors’ bangs, and her eyes widened when they took in Link.

The piano music tapered off. Ganondorf sat at the instrument further left. His fingers lay lightly upon the piano keys, but they dropped when he turned his head to look at Link. He wore black armor, and a ceremonial cloak the color of blood was draped over the bench around him. His yellow eyes gave away no emotion.

Link took a step forward. “I’ve come for Princess Zelda,” he announced. “As well as for the liberation of Hyrule from your undeserved kingship.”

Wordlessly, Ganondorf got up from his bench. Link stood in the room with a look of newfound determination on his face. Something about him… Something about the young man finally touched a nerve in Ganondorf. It was as if all this time he was numb to the feeling, and now it was spiking painfully in warning deep within him. Vaati had tried to warn him, as had his mothers, and Link’s own twin brother. Now it was too late. Link was here to take back Princess Zelda and Hyrule.

But Ganondorf wasn’t full of ire at the boy’s show of bravado--not yet. A part of him was impressed. Link had grown in all manners of the term in just a short few weeks--certainly more than the bit that he had grown in the years Ganondorf had known him. The power, skills, and confidence he had gained were almost supernatural given Link’s earlier disinclination towards combat and anything more than a simple life. A more powerful warning struck Ganondorf when he thought on how Link’s growth could be possible. The Gerudo pushed the feeling aside and took a step forward. 

“You’re a far cry from the little boy I met all those years ago…”

#

“…is the main hall to the soldiers’ barracks,” Ganondorf’s guide informed him as they headed down a stone hall like so many others the Gerudo had already seen. “You’ll be staying there. The soldiers have their own wing and are expected to be ready at a moment’s notice--not that we have much to worry about here in Hyrule now that the last battle is done and won.”

Ganondorf smiled thinly. He didn’t point out the fact that the last battle was fought against his people, and that he was now a servant to the castle because of it.

“This way then,” the guide encouraged, and he beckoned for Ganondorf to follow. But the two men had barely taken a dozen more steps when a burst of shouts and laughter announced the sudden arrival of a small group of young children. There were four of them, dressed in humble attire--children of the castle’s servants. They rushed past the two men in a tight group, shrieking with laughter. 

Not a second later, two more children rounded a corner in pursuit of them--or rather, one of them was in pursuit while his brother trailed in an unsuccessful attempt to stop him. They were identical twins, both blonde and blue-eyed; although the lead brother’s face was so contorted in anger that he was almost like a different person from his twin. 

The twins caught up to the other children, and the lead brother at once engaged them with shouted accusations and flying fists. It quickly turned into a brawl, and the other twin reluctantly joined in when his shouts to stop proved ineffective. 

“Those two aren’t servants,” Ganondorf pointed out, noting the difference in clothing styles in the twins.

“Friends of the princess,” the Gerudo’s guide explained. “Ever since their father died to save a castle official, they’ve been a favorite of the Royal Family. Street urchins who got lucky, in my opinion, and they always cause a ruckus. _Hey! Break it up! That’s an order!”_

The children didn’t heed the command, and the guard-turned-guide was forced to step forward to physically stop the fight. Ganondorf offered his help and, seeing two guards approaching them, the servants’ children broke away and ran off, still laughing. The twin boys were left behind. The angrier one was bleeding from a cut above his eye. His brother was attempting to calm him down long enough to study the injury.

“What is the meaning of all this?” the guard questioned the boys. 

“They were making fun of us!” the angry twin snapped.

“Darcel, please relax…” the other twin implored, his tone desperate. Darcel sneered and crossed his arms, but he no longer burst out in anger, allowing his brother to speak to the guard. “Will you please take him to the castle doctor?”

Ganondorf could see the guard was reluctant, but the twins must have had more influence than their looks suggested, for the guard gestured for Darcel to follow him. He promised to return so that he could continue Ganondorf’s tour.

“Thank you!” the remaining twin called after the guard’s back. He raised his right arm to wave, but dropped it with a wince to hug the arm to his chest.

“Are you all right?” Ganondorf asked. The boy started in surprise--he must have forgotten Ganondorf was there--and he nodded his head. But Ganondorf wasn’t fooled; he beckoned the boy closer. “Let me look at it. What’s your name, boy?”

“Link,” the boy replied. He walked to Ganondorf, and the Gerudo knelt down to take the boy’s small arm into his large hands. His fingers probed gently along its length, and Link winced again. 

“Sprained wrist,” Ganondorf declared.

“I know,” Link muttered. “I hurt it fighting those kids.”

“If you knew you were hurt, why didn’t you go to the doctor with your brother?” Ganondorf asked.

Link’s answer was one the Gerudo would not have expected from a boy not even eight years old. “Because I need to be strong for Darcel, and if he saw I was hurt I might not look as strong to him.”

“Is that so?” Ganondorf murmured, impressed. He had some medicinal magic at his disposal--learned on the fly during the war. He clamped his hands around Link’s wrist and spoke a word. A brief lick of black flame slipped up and down the arm, and Link’s eyes widened. “Try to move it now,” Ganondorf said.

Link twisted his wrist reluctantly at first, but with more energy when he found it no longer hurt. “It’s healed!” he remarked in an amazed voice. “Was that magic?” he asked next when Ganondorf stood up.

Ganondorf smiled and put a finger to his lips. “Our secret,” he whispered before reaching down to ruffle Link’s hair. The boy smiled too and nodded. “If those kids give you or your brother trouble again, Link, come and find me. Just ask for Ganondorf.”

“Ganondorf,” Link repeated, trying it out. “Can I just call you Gan?” he asked when he found the foreign name ill-fitting on his Hylian tongue. 

“Sure, kid,” Ganondorf approved. “Call me whatever you like. We’re friends now. I’ll take care of you.”

#

Ganondorf marked the young man standing before him as his memories faded away. “Yes, you’ve grown,” the Gerudo repeated. “Yet you’re still young. You have a long life ahead of you. So why are you here to throw that life away?” Ganondorf shook his head. “If you had let me take care of you, we would be standing on the same side right now rather than opposite ones.”

Link’s eyes narrowed, and he replied, “I’m not on your side because I know now that you corrupt everything you touch with your evil. And I don’t plan on throwing my life away. I plan on defeating you and, in doing so, freeing Hyrule.” 

Ganondorf scoffed, having heard this before. He snapped his fingers, and in a lick of flame the princess appeared beside him. “I’m not as evil as you think,” Ganondorf said, and he placed a soft hand on Zelda’s shoulder. “Your princess is whole and well. She holds the Triforce of Wisdom, as I’m sure you know. But even if she didn’t, I wouldn’t allow anything to harm her. However…” The hand moved to Zelda’s neck, and she gasped before her breath was cut off. “You might want to take care not to change my mind.”

It was an attempt to goad Link into a rash attack, and it worked. Anger contorted his calm face, and he unsheathed his blade before racing towards Ganondorf to strike him down. Zelda jerked her neck free and screamed Link’s name to stop him. She was at once returned to the magic crystal, and her shouts were silenced. 

Ganondorf’s arm swung out towards the right side of Link’s head. He didn’t see the arm on his blind side in time to dodge it. The heavy limb struck him hard and knocked him down to the ground. Ganondorf next raised a heavy boot to stomp on him, but Link rolled away in time and made to rise. His head swam in pain, and he had to pause in a crouch when the world twisted sickeningly around him. 

Sensing weakness, Ganondorf advanced. Link straightened his legs, but sunk down again when he felt himself tilt. This wasn’t good. He fought to clear his head even as Ganondorf’s shadow fell over him. He was still trying to focus when he felt a powerful hand grip him by the throat. Link slashed out with his blade, but another hand seized his wrist, stopping the attack. His body rose up, his feet left the floor, and he hung in Ganondorf’s grip, suffocating while the Gerudo studied him. 

“It’s a waste of your newfound skill to kill you,” Ganondorf remarked while Link struggled. “But I’d rather see you dead, as much as it disheartens me, than to see you use those skills against me any further.” Ganondorf tightened the hand he had around Link’s neck a little more, feeling the pulse quicken and the muscles strain in fearful tension. What little breaths Link was managing were cut off altogether when the walls of his windpipe pinched--

Navi zipped out as if from nowhere and flew straight into Ganondorf’s face. She was producing a high-pitched ringing sound that Link had never heard before from her. Perhaps it was the sound of her rapid wings, or an angry scream from the thus-far mute fairy. In either case, the combination of high sound and sudden light in Ganondorf’s face was enough to startle him into dropping Link so that he could swat at the fairy. 

Link hit the floor and rolled back. He stopped on his hands and one knee to regain his breath while Ganondorf futilely swiped at Navi. When Link was able to manage a breath without coughing, he tightened his grip on the Master Sword’s hilt and stood up to strike at his distracted enemy. He took one step forward, blade raised, only to freeze when he heard a sharp clap of sound. 

Navi’s ringing stopped. 

In the room’s flickering light, Link could see Ganondorf’s hands were clamped together before his face as if in prayer. The silence in Link’s ears was deafening, but the dark laughter that soon filled them was even more unbearable. Ganondorf dropped his hands to his sides. They were enveloped in black flames that burned away all traces of Link’s loyal, late companion. The Gerudo’s mouth opened wide in laughter, and he threw his head back to direct the sound at the ceiling.

Perhaps Ganondorf was finally snapping under the combined influence of the Triforce piece and the dark sorcery he wielded together. Or maybe killing gave him a sort of giddy high, and he was now beginning to show the truer colors that lay under his false, friendly façade. Link didn’t care. He snapped in his own way. His own blackness coated his thoughts, and before he knew what was happening, Ganondorf’s hard boot was connecting with his chest. 

Link had charged blind with anger, and with his bruised throat spiking in painful protest as he screamed a cry of rage. Now he was flying back. His body connected with a pillar, and he heard the Master Sword clang to the floor. Link dropped to his hands and knees and tried to find the blade through the tears that were blurring his good eye. His fingers stuttered over a familiar hilt; he seized the blade and stood up to attack again. He had no thoughts to spare for all of the training that his mentors had drilled into him. He only wanted to hurt Ganondorf as much as possible, as soon as possible, by any means necessary.

Unfortunately for Link, Ganondorf was thinking along the same lines. He was also thinking more clearly, and he was able to deflect Link’s brash attacks with ease in order to dish out his own, more devastating counter. A heavy fist, made heavier with the Triforce of Power, hit Link low in the gut, and he went sailing back into the same pillar once more. This time, the structure collapsed atop him, along with a portion of the ceiling. Sound filled Link’s ears, and dust filled his nose. He scrambled to escape, but too quickly darkness fell over his vision and mind.

Within her magical prison, Zelda screamed soundlessly and banged on the transparent walls. Dust and debris choked the air, but she didn’t have to see anything to know Link hadn’t avoided the stone-fall. While the air cleared, Zelda dropped her forehead against the crystal and wept. She was unprepared when the magic disappeared around her. Her feet hit the floor after a few inches’ drop, and she stumbled forward only to be stopped when Ganondorf seized her wrist. 

“Now then…” the Gerudo began in a dark growl.

Zelda turned her wet eyes towards the pile of stone. Her gut twisted when she saw a dusty arm sticking out from beneath the debris midway up the pile. The Master Sword hung from the limp fingers at a low angle; its tip rested on a chunk of ceiling. It was as if any moment, Link would stand and raise the sword again. But Zelda knew he was likely dead beneath all of the heavy rock. 

Ganondorf shook Zelda roughly to reclaim her attention. “No more games,” the Evil King continued in his growling voice. “The boy is dead, so there is no one else who can stand in my way. Now you will tell me where the last piece of the Triforce is hidden. I know you’re able to find it. You hold Wisdom, and you’re aware of more than you let on. _Tell me where it is, or watch what remains of your kingdom suffer under my wrath!”_

Zelda had no choice but to obey. She had to put her people first. Her only comfort came from the fact that with Link dead, the Triforce of Courage was gone from him and thus of no use to Ganondorf. But still she hesitated, for she feared what sort of anger this knowledge might invoke in the Evil King. All of Hyrule and its various peoples could burn before his rage was sated.

Sensing the princess’s hesitation, Ganondorf shook her again, harder, and once more demanded, _“Tell me where to find the Triforce of Courage!”_ He raised his hand in preparation to slap some encouragement across the princess’s face.

Something made him pause.


	29. The Trial of Courage

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Link and Ganondorf clash, and Hyrule's fate is decided.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you have made it here to the end of this story, I thank you with all of my heart! Please feel free to leave any final comments and feedback--I'd greatly appreciate it! Enjoy!

# In the Shade of a Hero

### The Trial of Courage

“Will you walk with me, Link?”

The Goddess Farore’s hand was warm to the touch, and that heat spread through Link’s body from head to toe. Hand in hand he walked with her, feeling almost embarrassed to be dressed in only a pair of pajama slacks while the Goddess shined beside him in her ever-present light. He pushed these worries aside, however, to focus on where Farore was leading him. A grass path gave way to headstones that passed Link by until he and the Goddess were standing before a familiar stone wall. One touch of Farore’s fingers had the secret passage open, and she led the way into the dark tunnel; guiding Link to the hall of heroes where his ancestors rested in a circle of graves. 

It was here that Farore released Link’s hand, but not before raising it to her lips to place a kiss on his fingers. She walked away to take a seat on the ledge that circled the man-made pond at the center of the small clearing. Her copper effigy paled in comparison to her beauty. Farore marked her reflection in the pool’s still waters instead of meeting Link’s gaze, and she said, “You are aware of how things stand.”

“I believe so,” Link replied, and he summarized Shade’s tale. “This is an alternate timeline. Shade--the Hero of Time--failed in his task to save Hyrule. He turned from his destiny in cowardice, and in doing so angered the Goddess of Time, who he represented along with you and your sisters.” 

Farore nodded, confirming Link’s good memory and encouraging him to continue. 

Link picked up, “The Goddess of Time lost faith in Hyrule, and when the kingdom needed help the most she instead drowned them out of anger. Now you and your sisters have a bet to prove not all Hylians are cowards. The Goddess of Time created this alternate timeline so that this little bet could be played out, and I’m at the center of it all. I have to surpass Shade’s failure and defeat Ganondorf, or this timeline will meet the same fate as the previous one did, and there will be no more second chances for Hyrule.”

“Very good, Link,” Farore praised with a smile at her reflection. “And let me add, you have done an exceptional job so far--too good, in fact.” Farore’s smile faded, and she finally met Link’s eyes. “The Goddess of Time is resentful of your success. No one--not even a Goddess--likes to be proven wrong, and while she shares our joy that Hyrule is in your good hands, she also harbors anger because it proves she once had doubts about the people who worship us. She is embarrassed by you, to put it simply, and she wants to be compensated.”

“In what way?” Link asked, hesitantly.

“She wants to take time,” Farore replied in a whisper. “She could take it from those who follow you to Ganondorf’s twisted castle. She could also take it from you.”

The warmth that had remained in Link’s body after Farore had dropped her hand now drained away, leaving him cold and shivering. He again wished he was wearing more than pajama slacks. “When you say ‘take time’, do you mean…?”

Farore stood up as sudden as if she was stung by a bee. She swept towards Link and took up his left hand in both of hers. She pressed the back of his fingers to her lips again and held them there while pearl-like tears fell from her eyes. “You have a choice,” she murmured against his hand. “You’ve always had a choice, Link. You don’t have to go through with this. You can turn away from this destiny and seek whatever happiness you can find in the years that remain to you. The Goddess of Time will drown Hyrule again if you choose to walk away, but there are other lands that will not suffer her wrath. You can flee to them, and none of us would blame you for it. But should you choose to continue forward, know that you could very well never see the dawn of a new day again.”

“Is that a guarantee?” Link asked while his stomach twisted into knots.

Farore shook her head against his hand. “I don’t know. We don’t know. She isn’t saying. She refuses to tell us no matter how much we beg. But there would be little we could do. By taking up Shade’s discarded mantle, you are as much a servant to the Goddess of Time as you are to us, like he once was. She can do with you what she wants.”

“This is the last trial,” Link murmured. He extracted his hand from Farore’s grip and lowered it to his side. Her tears glistened against the back of his fingers. He felt like crying himself, so difficult was everything to comprehend. He looked down at his hand and clenched it tight into a fist. He knew what power lay within him, and he knew the extent of his capabilities. But would that be enough to take down Ganondorf? Or should he turn away now and seek surer happiness? For a few minutes, Link debated the paths that lay before him. There were many possibilities--many _ifs_ \--and none were certain. 

Link took a slow, deep breath and said, calmly, “I have shown that I can wield Power, and I have carried the weight of Wisdom. Now I will prove the extent of my Courage. I will meet Ganondorf in battle. I will do my best to defeat him and release Hyrule and Princess Zelda from him. Whether or not I’m alive to see the happy end to my success… I’ll leave that to the Goddesses.”

Farore embraced Link like a mother might hug a child. Link stood still in her arms, his hands at his sides, as he tried to hold back the emotion that wanted to escape him. Although he had spoken true of his feelings, he still couldn’t shake the grim possibilities that ran through his mind: namely death and the failure it might bring should he perish before his task was done. 

But there was hope--Link hung onto that. There was as much a possibility the Goddess of Time would be content to let him live. He kept that warm thought in his heart even as he turned away from Farore and entered the tunnel that led back to Kakariko Graveyard. 

Darkness took over Link’s mind and covered his memories in a heavy veil. He wandered long in it until, exhausted, he found himself collapsing forward onto his hands and knees under the weight of it all. He felt drained of capability and drive--drained of the courage that had carried him so far. The darkness felt as heavy as stone, and it pressed against every inch of his body; causing him pain, and encouraging him to simply lie down and die rather than fight. 

“No, Link, you must stand and continue on! You mustn’t give up!”

A small pair of hands took hold of Link’s left wrist and pulled gently. He rose with them, already recognizing Saria’s encouraging voice. The hands moved to his lower back and gave him a firm push with all of the strength the small Kokiri girl could muster. It was enough to send Link staggering forward into the darkness, and he would have fallen again if a more powerful set of hands didn’t stop him.

“Steady, Link,” Darunia’s gently grumbling voice said. “Go slow and steady, and you will not falter.”

“Take care, Brother,” Link-goro’s voice called when Link walked away. He turned his head in hopes of catching a glimpse of the young Goron in the darkness, and he unknowingly walked into a firm body.

“I thought I had taught you to be a bit more observant of your surroundings,” teased Impa’s voice. In a more earnest tone, she added, “Thank you for remaining by Zelda’s side all this time--especially when I could not. Good luck, Link.”

The darkness was beginning to recede. Now it looked a little grayer to Link. But he still didn’t see who was ahead of him until he felt a thin hand fall against to his chest in a gesture to halt. 

“Wait up, brudda,” Mikau begged, half-laughing. “You’ll need this.” He pressed the Master Sword into Link’s hands and pushed the Hylian further along.

Link turned back. He wanted to apologize for what had happened to the Zora. But Ruto’s voice urged Link on from the darkness. 

“It was an honor for him to die for you, Link. He made his choice, and so have you. Now continue on your path and make his sacrifice worth something.”

Link nodded and continued walking forward. In the receding darkness, he soon made out the dimmest outline of a feminine shape.

“Don’t forget your shield,” Nabooru said when Link stopped before the barely-visible Gerudo queen. Link accepted the mirror shield from her, as well as a kiss to his cheek. “Keep your spirit up, Link.”

Link walked on, and the darkness pulled back even more. Now it was more gray than black--like the earliest light in the morning while the sun was still below the horizon. In the dim surroundings, Link soon came across another familiar person, and he stopped before his old master with a straight back and a determined expression on his face. 

“You won’t see me again,” Shade spoke out of the gloom. “I have no more reason to walk this earth as a tortured shade. You have learned from me, surpassed me, and honored my memory when I deserved none of those things. I can rest peacefully now and take comfort in the fact that though I showed cowardice, I was able to help you find the courage within yourself. Wear my tunic proudly, Link… and don’t do anything stupid!”

A smile cracked Link’s face. It twisted to an expression of protest when Shade dropped to one knee and lowered his head in a bow. Link moved to stop the swordsman--to make him rise--but the moment his hand touched Shade’s shoulder, Link’s master disappeared into the gloom. Link’s fingers grasped empty air for a moment before, sighing, he dropped his hand and continued on.

The darkness never entirely lifted, but it receded a little more before Link came across the last person along his path. He saw the tree first before he noticed the form leaning against it, but once his eyes fell on the person, he forgot about the tree and everything else. 

“Not a word,” Darcel said, raising an open palm when Link opened his mouth to speak. He leaned forward a little and groped at the empty air. His hand fell around what appeared to be a doorknob, although there was nothing to be seen. The hand twisted and pushed, and a frameless door opened out of nowhere to reveal a vertical rectangle of light that spilled over Link. 

Darcel, still in the darkness to the left of the door, jabbed a thumb towards the opening. “Your place is in the light. Open your eyes and stop walking in this darkness. There’s work to be done, and you’re the only hero who can do it. Just be careful. I’m not around to look after you.” Darcel smiled--not bitterly or out of anger, but with genuine happiness. Link was glad to see no shadows marred the expression, and he wore his own smile when he walked forward into the light.

#

“Tell me where to find the Triforce of Courage!” Ganondorf demanded, and he drew his hand up and back to strike at Zelda. Her eyes widened when the shadow of his hand fell over her face… and the tear-filled gaze shifted to something behind Ganondorf. 

The Evil King noticed a strange golden light waxing and waning in Zelda’s eyes. His raised hand dropped, and he leaned closer towards Zelda, who in turn drew back when she noticed Ganondorf’s proximity. When her eyes shifted, the golden light disappeared from them, and Ganondorf realized it was a reflection, which meant…

Ganondorf turned around, and the weak golden light played across his face in soft throbs like the glow of a firefly. The dark stone of the throne room flashed with each pulse. Following the source of the light brought Ganondorf to the pile of rubble that had buried Link, where he was stunned to find the Triforce on the back of the boy’s limp hand. 

The hand didn’t remain limp for much longer. No sooner had Ganondorf stopped by the rubble did the Triforce’s glow steady itself and intensify. The limp hand tightened, reaffirming its grip on the Master Sword. The stone began to shift as Link worked to unbury himself.

“I should have known,” Ganondorf growled through clenched teeth when Link rose up onto his feet from amidst the tumbling rock. “It was right in front of me the whole time. I let my concern for you blind the possibility…” Ganondorf spat. “I was a fool. But that changes now.”

Link was clear-headed once more with only minor pain in his body. The rock fall was little worse than having young Gorons tackle him in play. A more immediate threat was approaching him, and Link barely raised his sword in time to avoid another blow to the head from Ganondorf’s armored forearm. He stumbled down the small pile of stone, still warding off Ganondorf until he was on steady footing. Link shoved away the arm and retaliated with the Master Sword, which Ganondorf avoided in a sudden retreat of fear.

“That’s it, Link!” Zelda encouraged. “The Master Sword is evil’s bane! You can defeat Ganondorf with it even if he does carry the Triforce of Power!”

Ganondorf turned on Zelda at once. “Enough!” he snarled. His hand moved in a sudden motion, and the princess was once again entombed and silenced in a magical crystal that lifted up and disappeared into the darkness of the ceiling’s shadows.

“No! Zelda!” Link charged at Ganondorf, but this time it was no reckless attack. When he drew close enough, he dodged and parried the Evil King’s attempts to stop him. The Master Sword bit into Ganondorf’s flesh, just above his elbow, and he cried out in pain. Link added insult to injury when he sheathed his blade for a moment and seized Ganondorf’s wrist in both hands. He used the man’s weight and momentum to flip him up and bring him down onto his back against the floor. 

This was Link’s chance. He was at an advantage after just a few moves, and he had more than enough time to draw his sword and strike the splayed Evil King. But once he had the Master Sword drawn and pointed down, he hesitated for a mere second, and that was enough time to ensure Ganondorf had his own blade conjured and held up to stop the Master Sword from piercing his heart. 

The two blades connected point to flat, one of gray steel and one of black. Sparks flew and metal clanged. Link jumped back when Ganondorf attempted to swipe his legs out from beneath him with the black sword. The Evil King stood up once he was clear of immediate danger, and he raised his sword in a ready stance.

“I’m competent with a blade as well, boy,” Ganondorf said through a dark smile. “You forget--I was the one who gave Darcel the skills to meet you in battle.”

“I didn’t forget,” Link said with a shake of his head, and he raised his blade as well. “It’s you who has forgotten. I defeated Darcel in that battle.” He charged at Ganondorf, who met him halfway. The Gerudo was adverse against making any more contact with the Master Sword, and he used his wider black blade to effectively deflect Link’s attacks. 

Link recognized the battle’s similarities with the one he had waged against the armored knight, and he dodged Ganondorf’s powerful blows and dished out his own when possible, always moving as swiftly as he could to keep an edge over his slower opponent. But dodging wasn’t going to win Link the battle in the long run, and the few hits he had managed didn’t appear to do any serious harm to Ganondorf. 

“Is this how you defeated your brother?” Ganondorf asked, laughing, when Link retreated a few steps to reassess a possible approach. “I can’t believe he fell to your hand! Perhaps he simply ran at your sword and impaled himself upon it! He was certainly foolish enough at the end of his life for that!”

Link couldn’t allow himself to fall for the taunt. He was already nearly ended when he had recklessly charged after Navi’s death. But Ganondorf’s mention of the battle in the Water Temple helped Link. It reminded him that he had to use Farore’s Wind in order to get his brother’s body out of the temple. It was his only choice since dragging Darcel’s body through the water was too sore an option to consider. Now it appeared as if Link would have to use teleportation magic here as well. But did the same barrier that had stopped him outside the castle exist in this room as well? Link had to hope that wasn’t the case. He couldn’t get past Ganondorf’s defense by normal means, so he had to try something different. 

Acting as if he truly was charging recklessly for the taunt, Link ran at Ganondorf with his blade up and a cry on his lips. With his shield hand, he signed the magic for Farore’s Wind just as he came within range of Ganondorf.

The same barrier as before countered Link’s efforts, leaving him without a plan. The flat of Ganondorf’s blade hit Link on his blind side in the brief lapse, and the Hylian was sent staggering away into a wall with another cry, this time one of pain. 

“Did you think,” Ganondorf said as he approached his opponent, “that I would allow you to pop around with your pretty magic and get behind me? I’ve been using magic longer than you, boy, and I have learned to--” Ganondorf’s words broke off into an exclamation of surprise when a ball of fire sailed towards his face. He had come within close range of Link, and the Hylian--who had appeared to be in pain--had launched the magic with no warning.

“You blocked my teleportation,” Link said around a small laugh. “But I can still use Din’s Fire, remember?”

“Not for lo--” Again Ganondorf was interrupted when he had to raise his blade to ward off a sudden slash from Link. The blades sparked again at the meeting with a sharp sound of scraping steel, and no sooner had they parted, Link was attacking again. Ganondorf retreated under a barrage of steel and fire as Link advanced, dealing out both blows of his sword and bursts of flames. 

So involved in avoiding injury, Ganondorf didn’t have time to cast a barrier against Link’s fire magic, and it soon got the best of him. A burst of fire set his cape hem on fire, and Ganondorf desperately cast his own magic to kill the flames, leaving him open to a slash from the Master Sword that cut through his chest plate, biting into the skin beneath it.

“Ah!” Ganondorf leapt back into the center of the room. His chest felt like it was burning up. Voices screamed warnings in his head. Loudest was the Triforce of Power. It couldn’t do anything on its own against the divine blade’s power. 

Ganondorf spared a livid glare for Link. The Hylian simply raised his sword and charged again, intent on finishing his opponent. Ganondorf wasn’t going to allow that. Before Link could close in, the Evil King raised his black blade, pointed it tip down, and thrust it several inches into the floor. 

A ripple of near-invisible magic spread out from the point of impact at a speed too quick for Link to comprehend, let alone avoid. The magic hit him low in the legs, and he went down onto his stomach with a breathless grunt. While he fought to collect his breath, the stone floor crumbled beneath him. He made to stand, and the floor caved in, sending him falling down into the room below along with large chunks of the floor.

Ganondorf now stood on an island of stone surrounded by a ring of empty space where the floor had collapsed under the force of his magic. The Gerudo clicked his tongue in a scoff of disappointment. He had hoped to avoid killing Link before he could obtain the Triforce piece, but it looked as if plans had changed. “Two pieces should be enough to rule this world,” Ganondorf relented. “And perhaps I’ll come across the piece again now that Link is dead.”

“Who said anything about me being dead?” called Link’s voice, and Ganondorf watched the Hylian climb up onto the opposite edge of the broken floor. After gaining his feet, Link raised the Master Sword towards Ganondorf and offered a smirk. “Did you think dropping rocks on me would work a second time?” 

The crevasse of the broken floor now separated Link and Ganondorf. The two opponents studied each other for a minute in silence before Ganondorf laughed and raised an open palm. Dark energy collected in his hand as he said, “Kid, it would have been smarter to stay down there. Now I’m just going to try harder to break you.”

“You need my piece of the Triforce,” Link reminded him.

“If it means preventing you from ruining my plans of total conquest, I’m willing to lose it just to see you die,” Ganondorf said. He released his magic with a flick of his fingers, and the ball of energy sped through the air towards Link. 

Link had his mirror shield up and ready for when the magic reached him, and for a moment it appeared as if the shield’s properties would protect him. The dark magic broke apart against the polished surface, but it reformed the very next half-second into swift tendrils that swept around the edges of the shield to strike Link squarely in the chest with the force of a charging bull. Link was knocked back, crying out. He hit the floor and rolled to a stop where he rode out the magic crackling over his body with a look of pain twisting his face. 

Ganondorf laughed and launched another attack. Link raised his head from the floor and watched the ball of energy approach. He had no defense, so he attempted offense. He rolled over onto his back and swung the Master Sword out just as the dark magic drew close. Rather than breaking apart, the magic was sent sailing towards the ceiling under the force of the upward swing. It hit the wall along the way and blasted a portion of stone to dust which rained over the stunned Hylian below in a fine cloud. 

“What…” Ganondorf dropped his eyes from the shattered stone to Link’s blade. The Master Sword’s glow matched the intensity of the Triforce piece that radiated off of Link’s hand. 

Link was staring at the sword in equal amazement, but he had no time to study it for more than a few seconds. In anger, Ganondorf launched two more similar attacks, and Link was forced to scramble to his feet. He dodged the first ball of dark magic and batted away the second. He ran around the edge of the ravaged room, looking for an opening to jump across and meet Ganondorf in close combat. While he ran, Ganondorf kept up a barrage of dark magic. Link continued to dodge and deflect the attacks for several minutes until one of his sword swings sent a ball of energy back at Ganondorf. The magic hit the Gerudo in his chest, and he cried out in pain.

Ganondorf could be harmed by his own magic. The Gerudo’s arms folded up across his struck chest, and he appeared to be paralyzed by the crackling energy for almost half a minute. Link was too surprised to take advantage of the opportunity. By the time he recognized now was the time to strike, the moment had passed. Ganondorf shrugged off the crippling magic and laughed.

“Not bad, kid!” he called from his small island of stone floor. “But let’s see you try to knock back this!” Ganondorf raised his arms, and from the shadows of the ceiling black tendrils of dark magic snaked down towards him to collect in a large mass above his head. 

Link was unafraid. He braced himself and raised both sword and shield. When the mass broke apart, sending the dark tendrils towards him, he tightened his grip on the Master Sword and prepared to strike each one down. However, this time the Master Sword wasn’t quick enough to stop the attack. The tendrils snaked around each swipe of the blade and struck Link all at once. He cried out in pain and dropped to the floor, suddenly devoid of strength. Something in his still-healing chest panged out in protest while Ganondorf laughed his loudest yet. 

Link’s body lifted off of the ground. He opened his eyes and found himself surrounded by dark energy. He attempted to break free only to be tossed across the room before he could manage to escape. He hit a far wall and dropped to the floor with all of the grace of a lifeless doll. Ganondorf’s laughter continued, and Link gritted his teeth against the sound as he forced himself to rise. The Evil King stood behind a veil of red which Link at first took for his own anger until he realized a cut in his left temple was bleeding, cloaking his good eye.

_Head wounds always bleed more,_ Link thought to himself before wiping the blood away with an impatient hand. _You’re not down and out yet. Not even close._

Ganondorf was fixed on quickly making this a reality. When he caught sight of Link on his feet, the Evil King launched another barrage of dark energy balls at his opponent. Link saw them coming and readied his sword. When the wave of energy balls drew close enough to him, he spun his body and sword around in a swift spin attack, driving the dark magic back at its caster. Several of the energy balls struck the unprepared Evil King, and he was once again paralyzed with his arms crossed and his head bowed in obvious pain.

_Link! Draw your bow!_ The command entered Link’s head without warning. It sounded as if it was fighting to reach him from the other side of a powerful barrier. Still, Link recognized the voice. He took out his bow and an arrow in compliance, keeping Zelda’s face in his mind. When he notched the arrow and drew it back with the bowstring, Link’s eyes widened to see the feathered missile take on a golden hue not unlike the Triforce on the back of his left hand. It was now an arrow of light, and Link aimed it at Ganondorf through a new veil of blood creeping over his good eye. 

The arrow flew straight and true once it was released, trailing a tail of gold. It struck Ganondorf in the small space between his crossed arms and tucked chin, and the Evil King screamed in pain. The arrow dissipated in a burst of light, but its effects remained. Ganondorf sunk down to his knees as the light magic worked over his body, paralyzing him even more effectively than the dark magic had. 

_Now, Link!_ Zelda encouraged, and Link swapped out his bow for the Master Sword.

Even through his pain, Ganondorf felt a shadow fall over him. He forced his head up, and he saw the silhouette of a young man suspended in the air in mid-leap, holding a sword of white light above his head. The moment seemed to go on forever for Ganondorf. In reality it was only a half-second before the Master Sword bit into his body. It split his chest armor as it sliced him from right shoulder to left hip. When it cut into the unprotected torso beneath, Ganondorf felt as if his very soul was being ripped into two.

Link leapt back onto the safety of the wider ring of stone floor and wiped the blood from his eye so that he could watch Ganondorf in his final moments. The Evil King had let out a soundless gasp when Link had struck him. Now he was on one knee with a hand on his ravaged chest. His ragged breaths were impossibly loud in the silent room. When he raised his yellow gaze to meet Link’s blue eyes, the Hylian saw pain and regret in them. 

“After all… I tried… to do for you…” Ganondorf gasped. “I would have… taken care of you… and Darcel… in my new world…”

“But that’s just it,” Link said in a sad voice. “The world that you always saw and strived for was never yours to claim in the first place.”

Despite the distance between them, Ganondorf lifted an arm and reached out towards Link. His mouth moved in a silent word before he coughed up blood. It peppered his small island of stone in a fine spray, and he tried again, this time managing a weak, “Link…”

Link took a further step back, shaking his head, and the little energy left in Ganondorf collected on his face in a dark cloud. He was at once on his feet, and his arms rose up as if in protest when a scream of rage escaped him. Bright light streamed out from the cracks and kinks in his armor, and Link was forced to duck his head behind his arm lest his remaining good eye was also blinded. He felt the room around him tremble and break apart. He ducked down and hunkered under his wide shield to ride out whatever was happening. 

Even when the noise and shaking had stopped, Link didn’t straighten up until after he heard the soft thump of a dropping body. He opened his eyes and stood up to see Ganondorf splayed on his stomach. Blood crept out from beneath the Gerudo’s body in a widening pool. Some of it had already reached the edge of the stone island and was now dripping over in fine, red threads. 

Ganondorf’s last show of power had taken out the ceiling and most of the supporting walls, leaving the floor of the room open to the elements and the dark night sky. Link felt a soft breeze on his cheeks for the first time since his short ride on Epona, and that brought back memories of what he had lost. He collapsed forward onto his knees, dropped his bloodstained sword, and covered his face with his hands. 

Above Link, the clouds rumbled with low thunder, and a soft rain began to fall. From amidst the growing storm clouds, a crystal descended to the ground and, upon touching the stone, disappeared to reveal the princess within. Zelda cast one pitying look at Ganondorf’s corpse before she turned her full attention to Link. She rushed to him and knelt down to comfort him as much as possible. Link’s arms clamped around her in a strong but gentle embrace, and Zelda would have been content to sit and soothe his pain away forever if she didn’t feel a sudden jolt in the ground beneath her folded knees. 

“The castle,” Zelda gasped, and Link raised his tear-streaked face in confusion. “Link, Ganondorf held this castle in his desired image through the power of the Triforce and his own sorcery. If he’s dead, then the very structure of the castle is going to start to collapse! We need to get out of here!”

Link nodded, wiped his face free of blood and tears, and took hold of Zelda’s hand. “I can teleport us out of harm’s way. Ganondorf’s earlier barrier should be gone now. Hang on.” Link signed for Farore’s Wind, concentrating with all of his might on a safe point beyond the castle’s walls. But instead of feeling wind pull at him and sweep him and Zelda away, he instead felt pain spike in his chest. It was so sudden and sharp he made to cry out, only to realize the pain had left him momentarily breathless. 

“Link!” Zelda raised her free hand to Link’s brow, which was slick with a sudden sweat. “What’s wrong?”

“I… I don’t know,” Link gasped around his efforts to collect his breath. “Maybe I took more of a beating than I thought. My magic isn’t going to work right now. We’ll have to climb down to the ground floor the old fashioned way.” He cast his eyes around and pointed out what he was looking for. “There’s the start of the staircase. It still looks intact. Let’s hurry!”

Time appeared to not be on Link’s and Zelda’s side while they descended to the collapsing castle’s ground floor. The stairs were broken in many places, forcing them to leap down to further advance--a feat that grew more dangerous when the rain crept through the crumbling castle, slicking the stairs. Many of the rooms’ exits were blocked or collapsed from the ongoing tremors, but there was always at least one clear door, even if it was locked. Zelda took care of the locks with magic of her own, but she was weary from her kidnapping and imprisonment, and Link could see each outpour of magic taxed her remaining strength. He knew the feeling, and he did his best to help her.

There was one hairy moment when the entire castle shook with the most powerful tremor yet. Link and Zelda were in a narrow hall when it hit, and they were sent staggering into a wall while pieces of the ceiling collapsed around them. Link had a hunch the floating island had dropped down into the lava-filled hole it had left behind in the earth.

“Come on, Link,” Zelda encouraged once the worst of the tremor had passed. “We’re almost there--I’m sure of it.”

It was the very next doorway that finally led Link and Zelda to safety. They ran out of the castle with collapsing stone at their heels and hurried across the wet ground to a safe distance where they could watch the last moments of the dark castle. The central tower, devoid of support, tipped and sank down while the outer wings collapsed into themselves. A cloud of thick dust and debris bloomed up, choking the air. The falling rain smothered it quickly, revealing the flattened patch of land and outcroppings of stone that was all that remained of the castle. 

“It’s over…?” Link’s tone was hesitant--tinged with hope, but also with wariness. 

Zelda nodded, tears in her eyes, and wordlessly she embraced Link and kissed his trembling lips. “It’s over. You did it, Link. All of the sacrifices, all of the hard work… Now it’s over.”

Link wanted nothing more to agree with Zelda, but a sharp sound from the remains of the castle paralyzed the growing hope within him. Both he and Zelda turned towards the ruins, with Link instinctively pushing the princess further back as if he expected the very stone to rise up and attack her. 

“What was that sound?” Zelda asked in a breathless whisper. “Was it just shifting debris?”

Link listened hard with his ears--the ears of a Hylian, which were thought to be long enough to hear the voices of the Goddesses. He didn’t hear any Goddesses now; only thunder and rain. But beneath those sounds, something whispered to him that his fight wasn’t over. Wordlessly, he drew the Master Sword out of its scabbard and advanced towards the ruins. His head hurt, his body was sore and bleeding, and his chest panged sharply with each step, but Link pushed all of these feelings away as far as they would go and simply tightened the grips on his sword and shield. 

Still, he couldn’t help but wish he had Navi at his side, or that he wasn’t handicapped with half-blindness; for when he saw a groping hand emerge from beneath shifting stone, he knew he would need any advantage possible, but that there were no more available to him. 

Ganondorf crawled out from beneath the debris like a dead man emerging from his grave. He was littered with more cuts and bruises than Link was, and there was something wrong with his leg. When he staggered to his feet and walked forward, his right foot dragged. His black armor was severely cracked in some places and missing entire chunks in others. He spoke as he approached Link, and his hoarse voice was almost swallowed up by the increasing thunder.

“Not bad, kid,” Ganondorf rasped. He chuckled, and blood spurted from his mouth to drip down his chin. In the growing darkness under the thickening storm clouds, his yellow eyes flickered like flames. The slash in his chest gaped like a bloody, crooked smile, spilling more blood with each jolting step. “I can see now how you won the fights against your brother and Vaati.”

Link couldn’t believe Ganondorf was still alive, although on some level he had known this the moment the sharp sound from the ruins had hit his ears. “How did you survive?” Link asked, putting the question to the twisted man walking towards him.

Ganondorf stopped and straightened up some. His smile widened beneath his bright eyes. The sky flashed with lightning, and a sharp crack of thunder followed. Under the sound, Ganondorf began to laugh. He lifted his right hand and showed Link the shining Triforce on the back of it. 

Link could see now the insane monster that was within Ganondorf. It was the same monster that had killed the king; that had employed fellow monsters like Vaati; that had driven Hyrule to an age of darkness. And when Ganondorf rose up into the air, surrounded in a dark light, Link realized the monster was finally being revealed in corporeal form. 

The dark light focused on Ganondorf’s joints, and there it started to stretch his limbs and shape his body. Muscle was piled on as the body was expanded to fit that of a towering, green-skinned beast. Feet hardened into cloven hooves, and fingers grew into large, clawed hands to accommodate two wide swords. The head warped into a pig-like visage topped by twin horns that swooped up to sharp points. Only traces of the old Ganondorf remained--namely in the trail of red hair that flowed down the monster’s back, and the patches of Gerudian armor and cloth that covered its body. Thick fur stuck out from beneath the cloth and armor, but the rest of the skin was bald and scaly, similar to the lizard-like tail that grew to stretch out behind the monster. With this final touch, the monster stood completely emerged before Link. It bellowed to the skies in rage and self-confidence, and the clouds answered back with more lightning and thunder.

Transfixed by Ganondorf’s transformation, Link hadn’t noticed the ring of fire penning him in, separating him from Zelda. Now the princess’s shouts reached Link’s ears beneath the monster’s roars, and he turned around to see the tall flames stubbornly licking the rain-filled air. For a moment, he considered casting Nayru’s Love so that he could pass through the flames unharmed and rejoin Zelda. He remembered how tired she had appeared, and he was concerned for her. But when Link attempted the shield magic, he stopped halfway through casting it when his chest spiked in pain harder than ever. No, magic was likely not an option anymore--unless he wanted to tear himself apart.

A faint whistle--the sound of a blade moving through the air at high speed--caught Link’s ears. He spun and raised his shield, and the monster’s first sword swing was deflected. The second, however, caught Link in the chest, sending him back into a broken pillar of rock. He hit it hard and slipped down the stone face to the muddy ground. His head swam in a fog of pain, and it took all of his effort to remain sitting upright and conscious. 

A sharp pain cleared up the fog at once. Link’s right side felt as if it was on fire. His drooping eyes shot open, and he released a scream of pain. When he turned his head down to his side, he saw one of the monster’s swords was pinning him against the stone. It hadn’t speared him through, but its sharp edge had cut through the chainmail and deep into his side while passing through his tunic. 

The monster that was once Ganondorf laughed to hear Link’s cry of pain, and Zelda echoed Link’s scream before calling out over the storm, “Link, don’t give up!”

Link heard the shout. He felt Zelda’s voice fill him with warm light. And when the second sword came swinging towards his head, he didn’t simply sit and wait to die. He forced his pained body to move, and he raised the Master Sword to block the blow. The two swords met, and Link applied his waning strength to keep his enemy’s weapon at bay. The blades trembled, both of them gaining and losing inches in the shoving match, until Link was finally able to parry the blade away and retaliate with his own swing. The Master Sword’s edge cut straight through the steel of the monster’s blade as effortlessly as a knife through soft butter. The monster roared in rage and drew back its depleted blade in surprise, allowing Link the time to pull himself free of the first sword. 

Link gained his feet and hurried out of range of the monster, but his injuries were quickly catching up to him. He slipped and fell to the wet ground--now little more than a thick soup of muddy dust and dead, soaked earth. Pain spiked everywhere, momentarily taking Link’s breath away, and he was slow to rise. When he felt something shift in the air above him, he spun around onto his back without thought and raised his shield. 

It was enough to stave off death in the form of a heavy hoof. The cloven foot slammed against the shield and pushed down, but the wet ground was on Link’s side. The mud cushioned him, and he sank deeper into it instead of being crushed. But he felt a rib crack when the monster leaned more of its weight onto the braced hoof.

The smooth hoof slipped on the rain-slickened mirror shield before Link could be crushed to death. Ganondorf’s new, heavier form staggered with the sudden shift in balance, and it fell to its knees with a roar of protest. Link rolled out of harm’s way and sprung to his feet. His head swam in dizziness. The world tilted and spun before his good eye, and the taste of blood rose up at the back of his throat. 

Something was wrong, and it wasn’t getting better. Link’s battered mind thought back to his initial fight against Ganondorf. The dark tendrils that had attacked him and drained his strength… Had they done more damage to Link’s still-healing chest than he had realized? 

Link had no time to dwell on his pain. Again his ears were alerting him to something his depleted vision was missing. The Hylian spun, slashing without thought, and he was rewarded with the monster’s bellowing pain and rage when most of its tail fell to the ground in a twitching, severed mass. A slash of the monster’s remaining good sword was quick to follow. Link deflected it again, this time with his blade, but for a price. The Master Sword went sailing out of Link’s hand. It spun back and stuck in the soft ground some distance behind him, quivering slightly. 

Link ran for the blade. He had long ago learned that he could push his pain far enough away when he had a set goal in mind. Right now he was determined to end Ganondorf. He ignored his injuries and pumped his legs in as fast a sprint as he could manage. 

Two arm-lengths away from the Master Sword, a tremor shook the earth. The monster had thrown a chunk of the castle ruins at Link; and while the stone column had missed its target, the shockwave of the impact was powerful enough to drop Link to his knees. 

The Master Sword was right in front of Link. Its hilt was at head height and cocked at an angle towards him. The steel of the blade flashed in the lightning. But kneeling in the mud with his pain flooding back into focus, Link felt completely drained, and the last few feet between him and his only weapon seemed impossibly far--especially when smaller tremors announced the monster’s swift approach. 

_No, no! You’re not unarmed! You’re not defenseless!_

This voice forced its way through Link’s pain to resound in his head over and over. It was a combination of many voices. Link recognized them all. He borrowed their strength and spun around on one knee, bringing out his bow and an arrow at the same time in a fluid movement that gave no hint of pain or fear. Despite its fragility compared to a sword or shield, the bow had miraculously survived all of the assault Link had experienced. He drew back an arrow and took careful aim. 

“Come on, come on,” Link whispered. He wasn’t goading the approaching monster. He was speaking both to himself and the arrow notched in his bow. He willed the missile to glow with sacred light like it had before. Ignoring his protesting body, he pushed with all of his physical and mental will for any ounce of magic left in him. But he had nothing left, and Ganondorf’s shadow darkened him.

“Link! I’m here!”

A pair of hands fell over Link’s, and the bow and arrow were taken out of his hands. Zelda stood straight with no hints of weariness in her stance. The arrow readily glowed with the light of her Triforce piece, and the Triforce on the back of Link’s hand--which had grown almost entirely dark--sputtered back to life in solidarity. 

“Have a taste of the light, you dark bastard,” Zelda snapped. She released before her power could fade, and the arrow sailed straight for the monster, hitting it squarely in its piggish face. The monster was paralyzed the moment the arrow struck and dissipated. Zelda dropped the bow and pulled Link to his feet. “Go,” she urged. The simple word filled him with momentary strength.

Link moved as fast as possible before the energy could leave him. The Master Sword was retrieved, and he held it up high as he ran with a battle cry on his lips at the monster Ganondorf had become. He stopped when he was between the monster’s feet, and he swung his blade over and over again at the exposed green skin. The Master Sword cleaved into thigh, shin, and ankle, ripping out chunks of flesh and muscle and drenching the ground further with blood. Splashes of it darkened Link’s tunic, mixing with his own blood that was already soaking the cloth. He ended his slew of attacks with a final great spin. The monster roared and bellowed until its paralysis finally broke. It fell. 

The earth shook under the monster’s falling weight, and Link allowed himself to drop to his knees again with the shockwave. He sucked in breath after breath into his tortured chest and tried to quell the jerking muscles in his limbs. Every drop of rain felt like a needle against his sore skin, but he closed his eyes and tried to relish the feeling of the rain nonetheless. 

Through his left eyelid, Link saw a bright light. He opened his eyes and shook bloody bangs from them. Zelda was focusing an intense beam of light at the monster. It appeared to be coming out of her very hands--her very self. 

The monster began to bellow again in rage, but it couldn’t move out of the way. This was Link’s last chance to finish the battle once and for all. He forced himself back onto his feet, driven by Zelda’s shouted encouragement. He limped around the monster’s flailing limbs and stopped in front of its piggish head. 

Yellow eyes fixed onto Link, and somehow through its pain the monster was able to express the clear hate it felt towards the Hylian. Link searched the face for a moment, hoping to see some trace of Ganondorf in the monster’s features. But this beast was neither the protective castle guard Link had known as Gan, nor the confident and manipulative man known as Ganondorf and later, the Evil King. This beast was something else--something dark and misshapen.

“Ganon,” Link rasped, and he raised his blade in both hands with the tip pointed down at the beast’s head. “Return to whatever dark world it was you were birthed from, and trouble our land of light no more.”

Just as Zelda’s magic faded, Link thrust the Master Sword down--although in his exhaustion he more fell over the hilt, driving it deep into Ganon’s skull with his own weight. Ganon released a shrieking roar of defeat, and its head jerked in pain. Link didn’t see the horn; it came around on his right side. Neither did he feel it puncture his side; it was just one more pain amidst many. 

Link extracted the Master Sword from Ganon’s head and backed up several steps. His tired feet tripped him up, and he dropped onto his side in the mud. Darkness fell over him. 

#

A faint voice grew in Link’s ears until it was loud enough to rouse him out of the painful fog over his mind. He opened his eyes and turned his head so as to catch sight of who was waking him. In his good eye he saw Zelda’s gentle face, and he smiled at her, glad to see she was all right. 

“It’s over,” Zelda said when she had Link’s attention. “It’s over. We sealed him away--the Sages and I. It’s all over. Link, you did so well. My brave Link. My hero. I love you so much.” Zelda dropped her arms around Link and embraced him as well as she could, adding a kiss to his lips. 

“Zelda--” Link began. It was a mere whisper, and Zelda shushed him right away.

“Easy,” she begged. “Take it easy, Link. Can you stand?”

Link tested his body, sending out the command to move. Few muscles complied; he was exhausted to his core. “No,” he was forced to admit. 

“Okay, okay, it’s going to be okay,” Zelda said. She appeared to be reassuring herself more than Link. “I can’t carry you on my own, but Impa is already on her way here. She sensed our location as soon as Ganondorf was gone, and she’s on her way with people to help. I’m going to go meet them and lead them here. Link, don’t move, okay? I’ll be right back. Don’t move, okay? Okay?”

“Okay, okay. Relax,” Link murmured, weakly, with a small smile. 

“I’m so proud of you, Link,” Zelda whispered. “Hang in there, okay? I’ll be right back.” She cast Link one last worried look, kissed him again, whispered her love, and gained her feet. As she hurried away, Link watched her long goldenrod hair shimmer against her back. He closed his eyes when Zelda had moved out of sight, and he drifted back into darkness. 

Link opened his eyes again when he felt a presence close by him. He saw a set of curved talons sunk uncomfortably in the soft ground, and he shifted his gaze up to see the great owl Kaepora Gaebora looking down at him. 

“You did very well,” Kaepora Gaebora remarked. 

“Yeah, but I feel terrible,” Link said with a bitter laugh. “Impa’s bringing help, and Zelda’s gone to meet them.”

Kaepora Gaebora turned his head fully around to look behind him in the general direction of the Castle Town ruins. Link heard the owl click his beak thoughtfully before turning his head forward once more. “Can you stand?” Kaepora Gaebora asked.

“Are you kidding me?” Link said in return. “I fell like Ganon chewed me up and swallowed me.”

“Try anyway,” Kaepora Gaebora urged, gently. 

Link decided he may as well attempt to stand. At the very least it would prove to Kaepora Gaebora that he was in no condition to move without first being stabilized. Link’s left arm was pinned beneath his body; the Master Sword lay not far off. He braced his free hand down against the ground and pushed--and to his surprise, he was able to rise and gain his feet with no pain. He was somehow healed of his injuries, and he spun around in place with a joyful laugh, looking down at himself in amazement. “I can’t believe it! I’m okay! I’m--”

Link stopped halfway through his turn when he caught sight of someone lying close to his feet. It was a young man dressed in a bloodied green tunic. His eyes were closed as if in sleep, but the only part of him moving was his soiled blonde hair when it shifted in the light breeze. 

After a lengthy silence, Link whispered, “It’s not fair.”

Kaepora Gaebora clicked his beak again. “I know,” he said in a low voice.

“I tried so _hard--”_

“And you succeeded!” Kaepora Gaebora cut in with a brief spread of his wings. Link turned to him with mournful eyes, and the owl continued, “Your actions have saved Hyrule and the countless lives that inhabit this land. This timeline is no longer in danger. You are a hero, Link! But the Goddess of Time can be cruel in her anger, and she always had a plan to extract a heavy toll for having been proven wrong.” 

Link said nothing to this. He only closed his eyes and dropped his chin to his chest.

After a pause, Kaepora Gaebora spoke up again. “Come, I’ll show you something.”

Kaepora Gaebora flapped his wide wings and lifted up into the air. His talons grasped Link firmly by the shoulders, and Link’s feet left the ground when the owl lifted him up. The dead ground fell away; the ruins grew smaller, and the details less defined. But Link could still see the changes happening to the area. He and Kaepora Gaebora were witnessing what lay in store in the years ahead.

As Link and Kaepora Gaebora flew up and away from the ruins of Ganondorf’s castle, the area quickly grew over with grass, trees, and flowers, and a new castle and town sprouted up. Kaepora Gaebora turned west next, and Link watched the Gerudo open their lands to trade and visitors in the peaceful years ahead. The nearby Lake Hylia’s banks bustled with tourists and the Zora’s continued care. The Zora kingdom itself fell into the hands of its now-queen, Ruto, and prospered under her and Lord Jabu-Jabu’s guidance. The Lost Woods didn’t change much, and the ever-childlike Kokiri changed even less, but no change was a good thing for the Kokiri.

Kaepora Gaebora turned away from the Kokiri Village, and Link saw Hyrule Field restored to its former emerald green glory. No longer did an ill wind blow under a darkening sky, and travelers were able to come and go as they pleased without fear of being attacked by any enemies of the kingdom. While Link watched a young woman ride across the grass on horseback, Kaepora Gaebora shifted directions and caught an updraft to clear the high cliffs that surrounded the valley where Kakariko Village rested. He continued to rise with Link in his talons, bypassing the village for now and heading for the top of Death Mountain. Link caught glimpses of restored happiness in Goron City. He saw Darunia raising his son Link-goro into a strong, fine Goron. Next, Kaepora Gaebora was diving back down to Kakariko. The new buildings and homes of the village blurred into a cemetery that blurred into a dark tunnel, and Link found himself standing in a familiar sunlit clearing.

Laughter was the last thing Link expected to hear in a place where dead heroes lay, but he heard exactly that the next moment, and he found it cheered him. He turned his head towards the sound in time to see two young children--a boy and a girl of equal age--run into the clearing. The girl was chasing the boy; they were the source of the laughter. When the girl caught up to her quarry, she tackled him to the grass, and they both rolled and laughed more with delight.

A Sheikah woman who was only now beginning to show her age walked into the clearing after the children. She began to scold them for showing disrespect, but the queen who appeared from the tunnel next only tutted her tongue with a shake of her head. “Impa, relax,” the queen begged. “They’re children. And I don’t think Link would have minded.” To the children, the queen called, “Hylia, Daphnes, come here.”

Link watched the children approach, and he saw some of himself in both of them. He could also see some of the queen’s features--Zelda’s features. Link’s gut sank in despair at what he would miss, even while his heart soared at the sight of the two healthy children he was able to leave behind. While Zelda gave each child a flower and a set of instructions, Link drank in the sight as if he was a man dying of thirst, eager for any and every drop.

The children raced off to the other side of the clearing with their nurse not far behind. Zelda lingered a little longer by the tunnel, her face one of distant thought. Without thinking, Link reached out and placed a hand on the queen’s shoulder. He knew Zelda could neither feel nor hear him, but it was enough for him to be able to see her one last time.

Zelda shifted, almost as if she _could_ feel Link’s hand. Her head turned, and her eyes met his. She smiled.

“Thank you, Link.”

Link heard the sound of flapping wings in his ears, and at once he was lifted up into the blue skies over Hyrule Field. Kaepora Gaebora had taken hold of him again, and the owl was swiftly approaching the high mountains that bordered most of Hyrule. 

“What happens to me now?” Link asked when he felt he could speak again without showing too much emotion.

“Who knows?” Kaepora Gaebora replied, hooting the first word. “You are in the Goddess of Time’s hands now. Perhaps it will be eternal rest, or perhaps it will be a new destiny. But if you want my opinion, I don’t think you’re done with adventuring quite yet. You are a hero, and adventure always finds heroes wherever they are.”

Link had to be content with this answer, and with not knowing what lay ahead. He pushed his sorrow away, and although it never fully left him, he was able to lift his eyes to the approaching horizon, ready for any destiny that lay in wait for him.


End file.
